Office of Highway Safety: Be wary of slow-moving farm vehicles during harvest time

MOULTRIE — The Georgia Department of Agriculture and Governor’s Office of Highway Safety are joining farmers around the state in asking drivers to slow down when approaching farm vehicles on the road and safely pass these vehicles only in designated passing zones.

The two agencies are delivering this important safety message during the southeast’s largest farm show, the Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition in Moultrie. During the middle of the fall harvest season, farmers are using Georgia highways and roads to get crops and livestock to market and move equipment to their fields.

“Farming is a year-round occupation, and anyone driving in rural areas needs to always be looking for tractors and other slow-moving vehicles operating on our highways,” GOHS Director Allen Poole said. “Driving the speed limit should allow drivers time to slow down when approaching slow-moving farm vehicles so that the driver can pass safely in a legal passing zone.”

According to the Georgia Department of Transportation, 47 people have been killed and 866 injured in crashes involving farm and construction vehicles in the state from 2016-20. The encouraging news is the number of crashes involving farm and construction vehicles decreased by 11 percent over a five-year span from 2016-20. There were 437 total crashes involving farm and construction vehicles in Georgia in 2020 and 493 total crashes in 2016. The number of persons killed in crashes involving farm and construction vehicles dropped by almost 70 percent during the same five-year span. Sixteen people were killed in crashes involving farm and construction vehicles in 2016, and five people were killed in crashes in 2020.

While motorists are being encouraged to drive with care in rural areas, farmers also are reminded to make sure their vehicles are properly marked and all safety equipment is working properly before getting on the road.

Georgia law requires all farm vehicles and wagons on the road to have orange, triangle-shaped signs. These signs let other drivers approaching these vehicles know that the vehicle ahead is traveling at a speed that is significantly slower than normal flow of traffic.

“With the farming community and the driving public working together, we can prevent these crashes and ensure our farm workers can continue to do their jobs of getting food to our tables safely,” Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black said. “Our farmers do not want to hold up traffic and will pull over when they can. We ask drivers to be patient and make sure it is safe to pass before doing so.”

Macon County farmer Donald Chase is asking drivers to be on the lookout for slow-moving farm vehicles on the road after a friend and farmer was killed in a crash with a commercial motor vehicle earlier this year. Fifty-year old Todd Bone was moving equipment to a field when the tractor he was driving was hit from behind on a state highway in January.

“Farmers know our tractors and other equipment are slow-moving vehicles, and we ask drivers to be patient because we will move off the road when it is safe for us to do so that these vehicles can safely pass,” Chase said. “I also urge all farmers to wear their seat belt every time they are behind the wheel of their tractor or their personal vehicle.”

For more information about the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety or Georgia Department of Agriculture, visit www.gahighwaysafety.org or www.georgiagrown.com. Follow the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest highway safety information.

Special Logo