As Illinois enters the fall harvest season it’s important to be aware of tractors and other heavy farm equipment on the roadways.
WEST FRANKFORT, Ill. (WSIL)-- As Illinois enters the fall harvest season it’s important to be aware of tractors and other heavy farm equipment on the roadways.
From 2018 to 2022, the Illinois Department of Transportation recorded more than 1,200 crashes involving farm equipment, 22 of which were deadly.
News 3 talked with farmers about road safety and what other drivers should know.
Brad Browning is getting ready for the harvest season at his family's farm. He says they use machines like the combine harvester to pick up soybeans and corn, and that requires moving across the roadways to get to their fields.
“Sometimes we try to get off the road as best as we can. Obviously, the equipment's very wide, and certain things can be a hazard on the edges of the road, so we have to kind of pick our spots where we can pull off,� Browning said.
He says he travels as far as 18 miles to harvest, and that can be a long time on the road. The Illinois Department of Agriculture says most farming equipment reaches up to 15 to 20 miles per hour.
Browning says patience is key when you see large machines like combine harvesters or other slow moving vehicles on the roads.
“When they see flashing lights or an SMV sign just to slow down a little bit and give the machine's operator a chance to get moved over, to give them plenty of room to pass," Browning said.
Browning says that often, people don't realize how big the farming equipment is until it is too late. He says he saw a lot of close calls, and someone even got into an accident with them once.
“A car actually struck a piece of equipment and it broke the wheel off, flipped our piece of equipment over. Thankfully everyone was okay. The vehicle obviously had a lot of damage,� Browning said.
And that's more common than you think. Leon McClerren is the president of the Franklin County Farm Bureau. He says the smaller the road the less likely you both will fit.
He says if you meet farming equipment head-on, you should try to pull over if you can.
“If you're behind him, he probably knows you're there and he's looking for a spot to allow you to get around,� McClerren said.
McClerren says when people encounter farming equipment on the county roads and highways they should still drive slowly.
“Sometimes people think, ‘I can beat this piece of equipment.� Don't try. Because they can't stop on a dime either,� McClerren said.
Browning says that includes hills and winding roads too.
“We want everybody to go home. The same as our families want us to come home,� Browning said.
