Farmers aren’t exactly surprised to learn that they often face the ire of commuters when they need to take their farm equipment onto Nova Scotia’s roads and highways. What does surprise them is the number of motorists who would rather risk their own lives, and the farmers’ lives, rather than slow down.
It’s an issue that Farm Safety Nova Scotia is prioritizing in its campaign called, “One Road”. One Road emphasizes the shared responsibility for road safety, with information for operators of farm equipment and awareness for the driving public. The objectives of the campaign are: 1 – to keep farmers, farm workers, and commuters safe when farm vehicles are on roadways with motorists travelling at higher speeds, and 2 – to make sure farmers and farm workers are adhering to safe practices when sharing provincial highways and roadways.
The One Road campaign reminds everyone that we all share the same road, but use it for different purposes. Whether it’s the farmer or the motorist – road safety is everyone’s responsibility.
While the campaign message hopes to create greater awareness and understanding about farm vehicles operating on Nova Scotia’s highways, there is also a key role for farmers and their workers to play in making sure they follow safe practices and vehicle compliance regulations.
“Farming is vital to our economy here in Nova Scotia and has been for a long time. People seem to realize and respect this until they find themselves behind a slow-moving tractor on the highway,” said David Newcombe, President of the Farm Safety NS Board, “Getting on the road with our equipment is stressful, we know we are holding motorists up, we need motorists to know that we’re just doing our jobs and we want to do them safely.”
Over the next couple of months, you’ll see tv ads, interviews, social media posts and posters about sharing the road safely.
We have several One Road promotional resources to offer you including floor decals, logo bumper stickers, tractor or equipment window stickers with a pre trip checklist, posters and rack cards. If you would like to spread the word abut One Road by giving some of these items to your customers or having them on display in your business, please email info@farmsafetyns.ca or call Farm Safety NS at 902-893-2293.
There’s only one road, with many reasons to use it. Road safety is a two-way street.
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