By Andy Dahn

BLOOMINGTON – Harvest season is underway, and that means slow moving farm vehicles will be popping up on the roadways.

Bloomington farmer Jason Lay said drivers need to be on the lookout for farm vehicles this fall.

“First and foremost, just be alert of your surroundings,” Lay said. “If you’re going to try and pass a slow moving vehicle, make sure they don’t have their turn signals on. Also make sure if they’re using the shoulder on the left side, you probably shouldn’t try to pass them.”

In order to avoid serious accidents, Lay said drivers must be patient when they encounter farming vehicles on the roadways.

“Each and every spring and fall, I run into plenty of people that are very cautious and I also run into several that aren’t very cautious,” said Lay. “Ones that aren’t very cautious put themselves into situations that are sometimes a little scary.”

Lay added that drivers should give wide farm vehicles the right-of-way when it’s traveling in the opposite direction since many farming vehicles are unable to pull over to the road’s shoulder safety. If possible, drivers are urged to pull onto the shoulder or into a turn-out to allow the farm vehicle to pass.

Andy Dahn can be reached at [email protected].