Getting on VDOT's on call list for snow removal using farm tractor @$90/hour

[RickB]

Hmm, yeah, will need to look into the insurance requirements. Right now the tractor itself is insured through John Deere UtlraGard, but I would need to check if that is valid when clearing public roads. Probably not. And I have no liability insurance except when operating on my own property. There seems to always be a catch...

We only get a bad snow storm every couple of years, if that. We had nothing last year and nothing so far this year. If I had to buy 6 months worth, it would not be worth it, at all...

Insuring what might happen to your tractor is almost immaterial. The liability coverage is what I was referring to. I would not get involved without a MINUMUM of $1,000,000 liability coverage.

 

[edlegault]

May years ago my folks and family lived in a rural area of Western Washington state. One of my uncles lived "next" door -- about a 1/4 mile away. He worked for the local county road crew as a dump truck/snow plow driver. Another neighbor also worked for the county road crew. That's 1/4 of the county truck drivers. When it snowed real heavy and they couldn't get their car to work (to plow the roads), the county would hire my dad to clear a path through the snow with our JD 1010 bulldozer (front angle dozer blade). About 1 mile. Slow going. Usually in the middle of the night. Cold, no enclosed cab. Dad loved the county money. Years later my dad ended up working on the Alaskan pipeline. One of his jobs there during the winter was to plow snow with a grader for 6 hours in one direction, turn around and plow back to camp for another 6 hours. At least the Alaskan job had a heated cab.