Local Farm Leaders Push for Changes in Transport Laws

Chris Torres
Staff Writer

LITITZ, Pa. — Accidents can happen at any time. But most of us don’t think about it until the accident strikes close to home.

It struck close to home for Jeff Stoltzfus last November, when a farmer he knows was involved in an accident with his combine, and the car driver was killed.

It’s a big reason behind why Stoltzfus is leading a grassroots movement to change the farm vehicle transport laws in Pennsylvania.

Stoltzfus, adult farm educator in the Eastern Lancaster County School District, along with Don Hoover of Binkley and Hurst, Lititz, organized a meeting last Friday to share ideas on making changes to the state’s farm vehicle transport laws.

Representatives from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and Pennsylvania State Police, as well as farmers and representatives from several state ag associations, came to share their ideas on the issue.

The goal, according to Hoover, was to gather ideas for changes to the current laws, which he said are past due for a change.

“Farming has evolved to the point that some of these codes are not practical today,” Hoover said.

The issue for many in attendance is that the current laws on the books are unclear and confusing, leading many farmers to unwittingly break the law, putting safety at risk.

According to Stoltzfus, the farmer he works with was cited and found to be at fault when the combine he was driving was slammed into by a car that skidded while coming across a bridge in East Earl Township, Lancaster County, last November.

The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau’s guide to the operation of overweight and oversize vehicles lists a maximum width of 8 feet for any vehicle traveling on a state highway.

There are exceptions for farm implements, but that’s where the confusion comes.

For example, any implement used for “highly perishable crops” is allowed to operate on highways (other than freeways) so long as it is not wider than 14 feet, 6 inches and operates between the dates of May 20 and October 15. It must have two rotating yellow beacons and its four-way flashers operating.

There are also exceptions for farmers who work fields that are a short distance from each other as well as permits available for anyone who wants to haul things long distances on highways and are wider than 14 feet.

It is important to note that travel on these roads is not allowed at night.

But Hoover thinks the current laws are outdated and don’t address the fact that farmers have changed the way they farm dramatically over the past 20 years.

Many implements today are larger than what is allowed on the books — 16 feet wide or larger in some cases.

Plus, many more farmers have become custom operators, doing jobs like planting and harvesting and sometimes traveling long distances to do it.

Most laws on the books, according to Stoltzfus, are also unclear about where lighting needs to be located so a tractor or tanker can be easily seen by an oncoming driver.

So what changes should be made?

“It has to take us in the direction of safety, legality and practicality,” Hoover said.

Judging by what was said at the meeting, finding a solution won’t be easy.

Some called for more permits, while others argued that allowing implements to move around at night might result in fewer accidents because of fewer cars and trucks on the road.

Some people, including Jeff Graybill of Penn State Cooperative Extension in Lancaster County, think there should be exceptions made for small farmers instead of a one-size-fits-all approach.

The state police troopers at the meeting pointed out that factors such as distance traveled, especially in the case of custom operators, should be considered just like tractor trailer drivers must record their distance and time traveled on a given day.

People at the meeting were invited to join subgroups to continue working on ideas.

Hoover said he was pleased with the feedback and hopes a final list of recommendations will be forwarded to the state legislature, most notably Sen. Mike Brubaker (R-36), the chair of the Senate’s Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee, by the end of the year.

He said the ball is now in the ag community’s court to come together and agree on a recommendation that suits both large and small farms as well as custom operators.

“It’s not going to be a quick fix, but now is the time for a change,” he said. “That’s a challenge to get all of these farmers to agree because they all have their individual perspectives.”

No question for Stoltzfus, it’s all about safety.

“I don’t care if a tractor is traveling five miles or 50 miles. All I care about is that they are safe,” Stoltzfus said.