In his weekly news briefing, Governor Branstad expressed concern over Iowa traffic fatalities involving farm vehicles in the state urging all motorists to exercise caution during the spring planting season.
Last year, there were nearly 200 crashes involving farm vehicles, many resulting in injuries and a number of fatalities. This year one farmer was killed last month when a car struck his tractor from behind and many more were injured in other collisions involving farm vehicles around the state.
Brandstad, a farm kid himself, notes that because farmers are covering more ground, they are traveling greater distances on the roads putting these slower-moving vehicles at higher risk for a collision with cars traveling at higher rates of speed. With limited time to get their crops in, many farmers are working after dark, which makes seeing farm vehicles more difficult for motorists also.
Add to that, distracted driving or impaired driving and the risk of being involved in a car or truck accident goes up for all motorists. With over 400 traffic deaths in 2016 in the state of Iowa, the problem has become a number one priority for lawmakers. Heightened concern has prompted new legislation to tackle texting while driving and driving under the influence as well as various campaigns to raise awareness about other traffic safety issues such as such as farm vehicle vulnerability.
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