Road safety a shared responsibility

Sgt. Mark Hume has seen a lot on the roadways of Manitoba as a unit commander with RCMP Traffic Services.

And working in rural Manitoba, it’s no surprise that he’s seen several roadway incidents involving agricultural equipment.

He recalled an incident on Highway 5 by Gilbert Plains, located about 350 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg. On that particular day, there was a rainstorm when Hume came across a large eight-wheel tractor on the roadway, with a pickup truck following behind. Even in the rainstorm, Hume could tell that the driver of the tractor was young – too young to be driving a tractor.

After initiating a traffic stop, Hume learned an 11-year-old was driving the tractor, and the father was behind in the pickup. The father said to Hume, “Well, he couldn’t drive the pickup without a licence, so I had him drive the tractor.”

Of course, a valid drivers’ licence is required to drive – be it farm equipment, a motor vehicle, or anything else – on roadways. But this incident underscores some of the misconceptions that persist about road safety where agricultural equipment is involved.

While this story didn’t end tragically, many others do. Indeed, many tragic, and potentially avoidable, incidents have stuck with Hume over the years. According to Canadian Agricultural Injury Reporting data, there were 107 agriculture-related fatalities on roads and highways between 2003 and 2012.

And, certainly, the matter of road safety is pertinent right across the country.

Over on the East Coast, road safety is an ongoing issue for Farm Safety Nova Scotia, which has developed a training program and other resources to highlight the importance of road safety in the farming community.

“We always try to keep road safety in the public ear as much as possible. When people are driving every day, sometimes they stop paying attention. But people need to be

aware of their surroundings at all times,” explains David Newcombe, president of Farm Safety Nova Scotia. “That sense of complacency is incredibly dangerous on the road.”

A key aspect of the training program is informing farmers about the province’s Motor Vehicle Act and how it applies specifically to the agricultural industry.

But while farmers play an important role in road safety, the onus isn’t theirs alone. Newcombe points out that we all use the same roadways, which is why road safety is everyone’s responsibility – regardless of the vehicle or equipment being driven.

To raise awareness about that shared responsibility, Farm Safety Nova Scotia has developed a campaign called “One Road.” The campaign highlights safety tips for motorists – such as being aware of farm equipment making left turns and knowing when to pass – and reminds farmers to follow safe practices when using roadways and highways.

“We want people to understand that safety on the roads is a two-way street that applies to both the farming community and general public,” explains Newcombe. “All of us farmers know that we’re slow and take up a lot of space on the road. We don’t want to cause anyone to be slowed down too much but people need to remember to take care and only pass when it is safe to do so.”

As Newcombe notes, road safety is “one of those things that will always be a priority.” And hopefully initiatives such as Farm Safety Nova Scotia’s will continue to serve as a reminder about the importance of road safety and mitigate the occurrence of tragic incidents.

“It’s important for the general public and farming community to keep in mind that not only is safety a shared responsibility,” says Newcombe, “but at the end of the day, we all have the same goal of getting to our destination safely.”

For more than a decade, CASA has been raising awareness about the importance of safety on Canadian farms through Canadian Agricultural Safety Week (CASW), which takes place every year during the third week of March. CASW is presented by Farm Credit Canada. In 2022, CASW sponsors include long-time corporate sponsor Farm Credit Canada, as well as CN, Syngenta, Bayer Crop Science, and Fertilizer Canada.