Tractor hit by SUV

[CobyRupert]

:2cents: When clearing snow at the end of the driveway, I think it is best to snow blow parallel with the public road, facing traffic (going in the opposite direction).
That way, you're more likely to see them coming and can duck back into the driveway, also your headlights are shining right at traffic so they can see you better & you're not sticking out into the road at a perpendicular.
I do this for a couple passes across the end of the driveway until I've cleared enough so that I no longer have to stick out into the road when I come to the driveway's end.

Good point about whose fault is this if she wasn't dwi (and/or is it her fault just because she was dwi)?

 

[George2615]

That is ALWAYS one of my major concerns when I reach the very end of my driveway, where it dumps out onto the county road. My plowing the end of the driveway and mailbox area puts me out on the county road for about an hour. I have EVERY light, blinker and the beacon atop my canopy going full bore during this operation.

My tractor is big enough and flashing enough that folk DO slow down. I always stop and pull off the road when I see somebody coming. I give everybody a big wave of thanks for slowing down.

Same here. I plow out several neighbors and when I'm on the road I have 4 ways flashing, Electronic LED amber strobe on top, 6 LED flashing strobes (3F & 3R), 22" wide LED flood/spot lights F & R, and Red and white reflective DOT tape all around. If I see someone coming I pull over and stop.

I know my tractor can be seen from 1/4 mile away day or night since the local road dept. guys stopped one day to let me know. They said they wished every one who plows lit up their tractor like I did because when they are plowing its sometimes hard for them to see. The drunk driver or inattentive drivers on my country road are still a big concern.

 

[LouNY]

I don't like the idea of bright lights facing into drivers eyes, it's about the same as coming up on the strobes on the new emergency vehicles at night they are of such a blinding intensity that it makes it difficult to see individuals moving around. With flashers and smv signs and possibly work flood lights that don't shine into drivers eyes you are as well covered as you can be. When we are on the road or working next to one we have flashers going and try to keep an eye on traffic but too many of the drivers don't give a **** whats on "their" road and seem to try and come close to you. One problem in our area is the speed limit if not posted is 55 and too many idiots try to go that fast on back country roads with curves and blind hills.

 

[wagne223]

"Thinking" If a full blown out drunk comes down the road and the tractor driver pulls into his /her path who caused the accident?

The tractor driver, however, DWI is a worse offense and one could argue that the car driver should not have been on the roads and if they had not been DWI they could have avoided the crash.

 

[jbrumberg]

A seatbelt might have helped. I always wear mine.

I too have a lot of road frontage on a low trafficked country road with posted 35 mph speed limit. When I am on the road or even close to the road moving snow I have the lights on and hazards flashing. I have had several close calls over the years. Sometimes I wonder if some drivers just do not "register" a tractor in their minds when they see one on the road. This is a farming/dairy community too. I agree about the previous posters' assessments of driver's "skill's" and distractions.

 

[oosik]

Old snow plowing habits die hard. I like plowing early in the AM when the snow is most likely to be frozen/crusty. I get out there early with the idea, beyond frozen snow, that I'm out before those who have to drive in to work. It pretty much works that way - during my 45 minutes to hour plowing the opening to the driveway - driveway is a mile long - and the mail box area - I'll probably only have 3 to 4 vehicles pass me.

What also helps - at that time of the day, chances are pretty good that the county has not plowed their road either. Most traveling the county road before its been plowed are going pretty slow and carefully. Especially if we get 8 to 12 inches of fresh snow.

The posted speed limit on the county road is 45 mph. For a few, it must say - "go like a bat out of H*LL".

 

[daugen]

Lou has a good point about bright lights, sure don't want to blind oncoming traffic so that makes the situation a lot worse. All of my lights are aimed down into the field, not like I'm going fast and need to see far ahead. I want what is directly in front of me lit up like day. We aren't in the Baja here...
I got some nice super bright 3M reflective tape stripes from Amazon, and went to town on most of my equipment. Found a spot for these one foot long strips that stick like mad.
Put two on the back seat of my garden tractor.

Haven't put anything on my new Kubota F2690E mower that will now replace the garden tractor.
Big orange pumpkin with an orange roof/sun shade ought to be visible to anyone
right? I think I need to put that rotating LED light somewhere on the rear of that. I'm not going to get hit from the front, it's behind me I worry about.
If I think someone is not paying attention coming at me, I stop and get as far over as I can. Usually they are animatedly on their phone, or texting.
There's a big iron weight bar on the rear, going to put the magnetic light on that, should have good grip. I don't even know if the mower has a 12V plug but I'll go directly to the battery
if need be, with a decent inline switch.

 

[jbrumberg]

Lou- Good point. I no longer need to move snow at night, but back then and now I tried/try not to aim those headlights into the oncoming traffic. For some reason I have this memory that in MA it is illegal to have additional lighting like flood lights on while on the road (more research- thanks Lou). Technically I believe that it is illegal for me and all the other tractor operators in the area to operate on the roads w/o a Agriculture License Plate which I and probably a lot of others are ineligible. Local LE does not care, other O/O's drive the road here, and I once while on the road asked a MA State Police Officer who was parked. I have a SMV and my lights and flashers were operating. He said that if I was on the road that I needed to have all 4 tires on the road. My Homeowners insurer told me I was covered along my roadside.

 

[daugen]

It's not always inattention that gets tractors hit, but the result of some other altercation on the road and the tractor
might be the second thing hit. I think of those guys who mow the big freeways and how often they've seen cars careening off the road at them
as they dodge for their lives in their yellow tractors. If the road guys are painting their tractors yellow, what does that tell you?
Yeah, they have mostly bad taste..., but clearly, pun intended, they want to be visible. Some are that horrible lime green.

So your dark green tractor is likely harder to see than my orange pumpkin. Or my bright red Massey. So I'd say you JD guys need brighter lights to be safe, or more of them.
I've found that the local farmers are great, but the general public can be self absorbed idiots.
Dangerous idiots too.

First thing I saw this morning at the end of my lane was my roadside all tore up and sure enough someone had crashed into my ditch, not paying any attention to the still snowy and icy
section of road out there because it's very shady. I went and picked up the trash they left, and will fix the lawn next week. I'm not holding my breath that they will come
back and fix my torn up lawn. All I ask is don't run into me. Some of them don't seem to have the ability not to.

 

[jbrumberg]

New Holland Smerf blue is almost as hard to see as JD Green.

We still have road ice and snow and the plowed snowbanks for vehicles to bounce off.

So far this year there has been no property roadside debris trail of car/truck body parts; but I have not yet checked today. There probably is garbage. There is always some kind of garbage roadside.