Motorists, farmers need to be mindful when sharing road

Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development is reminding motorists and farmers that sharing the road is of paramount importance — especially at this time of year during harvest.

Some of the reminders for farmers include keeping equipment visible, safe, and making sure that all operators have a valid driver's licence and ensure they know the limitations of the equipment they are driving.

Proper maintenance on the equipment, such as ensuring that all brakes are in good working order and that tires are inflated to the proper pressure will go a long way in making sure large equipment is safe.

“You want to be as visible as possible and you want to plan your route and you want to have well-trained operators, obviously,” Laurel Aitkin, a spokesman for AARD, said. “But the other side of the coin that is an important point to make is that it's a two-way street. We all have to work together.”

Aitkin said the motoring public needs to be aware of their speed and that farm machinery will be travelling much more slowly.

“Those of us who are on the road with much faster vehicles need to be so aware that at this time of the year these slow-moving vehicles are out there and they're cumbersome and they can't really pull over into the (shoulder) … for us to be aware of that and not force our way around them and get them into a dangerous situation,” she said.

Another notion to be aware of for motorists is that since farm machinery is travelling so slowly, a vehicle travelling at highway speed will close the gap extremely quickly, so they need to slow down until it's safe to pass.

Farmers also need to take the few extra minutes necessary to clean their machinery if possible before moving from the field to a roadway – especially in low light conditions – so that the slow-moving vehicle signage or the equipment itself can be seen.

“It's amazing how often I see equipment that has the triangular slow-moving equipment symbol on the back, but it's either so old and faded … or it's just so covered in dirt and dust that you know it's not really going to show up at all once the lighting gets poor,” Aitkin said.

Farmers should also plan their route carefully to avoid bridges, for example, where equipment might not be able to safely cross. Farmers also need to be conscious of when they're planning to travel so that it can be done before it's dusk or dark.

Motorists also need to be mindful that when farmers are moving equipment on the range roads and township roads, that those roads aren't as wide as highways, so they should be slowing down and following behind for a distance and to not get impatient at the slow-moving vehicle.

“That's where we have to remember that a lot of times the farmer doesn't have a choice on what road to take and so we have to really think … that we have to share the road. And so while it may take us a little bit longer if we have to slow down and follow a piece of equipment for a little while on a road, it's just part of the season,” Aitkin said.