Planting season is in full swing across Iowa, and Marion County Sheriff Jason Sandholdt reminds motorists to be mindful of farm equipment on local roads. He says most incidents can be prevented with caution, patience, and by giving farmers ample space to operate on the roads.

“When you have slow moving vehicles, whether it be on a highway or gravel road, when someone comes up over a hill and doesn’t see that slow moving vehicle; people have to realize that modern tractors are a lot faster than they were back in the day, they can come over a hill on a gravel road where the tractor is going 25 miles per hour, and the person is going 40. So really pay attention to that, slow down when you’re going over hills, and give those tractors space.”

Sandholdt also says that passing slow-moving vehicles in no-passing zones is still illegal, even if motorists think they can do so safely.