It's that time of year when we start to see different colors.  Your red, greens, and blues and some rust color in there too.  I'm not talking Christmas lights I'm talking combines, tractors, and other farm equipment.  You've probably seen them lumbering up and down the road much slower than most of us are going.  That can be where the problems occur.

How fast do farm vehicles go?

According to the Iowa Farm Bureau, these vehicles are moving typically at 25 mph or less, which is significantly slower than regular traffic.  Iowa requires these vehicles to have a slow-moving vehicle emblem (SMV) It is an amber-colored triangle shape that is meant to alert other drivers to the farm equipment's slower speeds.

Are there specific laws regarding farm equipment on roadways?

From what I'm reading Iowa does not have any special laws about sharing the road with farm equipment, other than the previously mentioned slow-moving vehicle placard.  There are already rules of the road that must be followed regardless of what type of vehicle.  You cannot pass a farm vehicle when there is a double yellow line present.  That is the law regardless of what vehicle.  Speed is usually what comes into play.  The farm vehicle is slow, the other vehicle wants to pass and there is a double yellow, still illegal to cross the double yellow and go around.  The other issue is if you're too occupied with getting around you don't see their blinker and the vehicle turns into you while you're trying to pass, it won't be a good day.

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Canva/TSM
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Are there certain types of places where crashes occur more often?

A study done by the Great Plains Center for Agricultural Health located in the College of Public Health at the University of Iowa found that crashes are more likely to happen on certain types of roads where the speed limits are over 50 mph, higher traffic density, farm to market routes and narrower roads.  Farm machinery that was not properly lit was another reason for crashes.  Data was analyzed from over 7,000 crashes in the years 2005 to 2010, across nine midwestern states.

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Iowa's DOT Has something to say about farm machinery crashes

The Iowa Department of Transportation says there are over 1,100 crashes annually involving motorists and agricultural vehicles.  They report 30 fatalities in Iowa involving farm machinery between the years 2017 to 2022.

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Iowa State Patrol Facebook/Canva/TSM
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The Iowa State Patrol would like you to be safe around farm machinery during this harvest season, see that message here Iowa State Patrol

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