Provides that farm machinery, implements of husbandry and other machinery including road construction and maintenance machinery which are designed to operate at a speed greater than twenty-five mph but less than forty mph shall display a slow-moving vehicle emblem as well as a speed identification symbol.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9522A
SPONSOR: Woerner TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in
relation to slow moving vehicles
PURPOSE:
To increase the speed at which a slow moving vehicle, with an attached
slow-moving vehicle emblem, and an additional speed identification
symbol, may travel on roadways, to help strengthen farm equipment safe-
ty.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Section 375 of Vehicle and Traffic Law is amended to direct
the commissioner to adopt standards and specification for design,
creation and use, in conformance with American Society of Agricultural
and Biological Engineers standard which meets the criteria of the Ameri-
can National Standards Institute / American Society for Testing and
Materials S584 for the size, design and mounting of a speed identifica-
tion symbol. A speed identification symbol shall indicate the maximum
speed, in miles per hour at which the unit of farm machinery, implement
of husbandry and other machinery including road construction and mainte-
nance machinery to which it is mounted is designed by its manufacturer
to operate
Section 2: Establishes the effective date
JUSTIFICATION:
As agricultural technologies continue to improve, it is important to
keep regulations updated to reflect those changes. Current state law
requires the slow moving emblem to be displayed on agricultural equip-
ment designed to operate at 25 miles per hour or less when traveling on
public highways. However, farm tractors and other equipment are being
designed to travel at speeds above 25 miles per hour and some are even
designed to travel at speeds to greater than 35 miles per hour. The
State of Iowa has increased the speed at which equipment may be operated
with a SMV emblem to 35 miles per hour to accommodate agricultural
equipment traveling at speeds greater than 25 miles per hour.
The legislation would still require that the slow moving vehicle emblem
be displayed on all farm machinery, whether self-propelled or towed, but
would increase the speed at which the machinery could travel from 25 mph
to 35 mph. The slow-moving vehicle emblem alerts other drivers that the
vehicle is travelling at a reduced speed and to use caution when driving
behind the machinery. One of the major reasons why accidents occur with
farm equipment is that nonfarm drivers fail to adequately react and
respond when driving around farm equipment. For example, non-farm driv-
ers often do not anticipate how slow farm equipment travels and there-
fore do not start to slow their vehicle as they approach the implements.
Therefore, it is important to notify other drivers of the reduced speed.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment
and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation
of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
completed on or before such effective date.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9522--A
IN ASSEMBLY
January 19, 2018
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WOERNER, BRINDISI, BRABENEC, BLANKENBUSH, FINCH
-- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. HAWLEY, MAGEE -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Transportation -- committee discharged,
bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said
committee
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to slow moving
vehicles
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 36 of section 375 of the vehicle and traffic
2 law, as added by chapter 322 of the laws of 1969, paragraph (b) as
3 amended by chapter 350 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as
4 follows:
5 36. (a) (i) The slow-moving vehicle emblem as developed by the Ameri-
6 can Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers shall be recognized
7 as the official state slow moving vehicle emblem. The commissioner of
8 motor vehicles shall adopt standards and specifications for design,
9 creation and use, in conformance with those recommendations of the Amer-
10 ican Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers for the size,
11 design and mounting of said slow-moving vehicle emblem.
12 (ii) The commissioner shall adopt standards and specifications for
13 design, creation and use, in conformance with those recommendations of
14 the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers standard
15 which meets the criteria of the American National Standards
16 Institute/American Society for Testing and Materials S584 for the size,
17 design and mounting of a speed identification symbol. A speed identifi-
18 cation symbol shall indicate the maximum speed in miles per hour at
19 which the unit of farm machinery, implement of husbandry and other
20 machinery including road construction and maintenance machinery to which
21 it is mounted is designed by its manufacturer to operate.
22 (b) (i) Farm machinery and implements of husbandry and other machinery
23 including road construction and maintenance machinery designed to oper-
24 ate at twenty-five miles per hour or less, traveling on a public highway
25 during day or night, whether self-propelled or used in combination,
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13206-06-8
A. 9522--A 2
1 shall each separately display a slow-moving vehicle emblem as specified
2 in paragraph (a) of this subdivision.
3 (ii) (A) Farm machinery and implements of husbandry and other machin-
4 ery including road construction and maintenance machinery designed to
5 operate at a speed greater than twenty-five miles per hour but less than
6 forty miles per hour, traveling on a public highway during day or night,
7 whether self-propelled or used in combination, shall each separately
8 display a slow-moving vehicle emblem and a speed identification symbol
9 as specified in paragraph (a) of this subdivision.
10 (B) If an agricultural tractor that is designed by its manufacturer to
11 operate at a speed greater than twenty-five miles per hour but not
12 greater than forty miles per hour is being operated on a street or high-
13 way at a speed greater than twenty-five miles per hour but less than
14 forty miles per hour and is towing, pulling, or otherwise drawing a unit
15 of farm machinery, the unit of farm machinery shall display a slow-mov-
16 ing vehicle emblem and a speed identification symbol that is the same as
17 the speed identification symbol that is displayed on the agricultural
18 tractor.
19 (C) When an agricultural tractor is designed by its manufacturer to
20 operate at a speed greater than twenty-five miles per hour but less than
21 forty miles per hour is being operated on a street or highway at a speed
22 greater than twenty-five miles per hour, the operator shall possess some
23 documentation published or provided by the manufacturer indicating the
24 maximum speed in miles per hour at which the manufacturer designed the
25 agricultural tractor to operate.
26 (c) The use of such emblem and symbol shall be in addition to any
27 lighting devices, flags or other equipment required by law. Such emblem
28 and symbol shall be used only on farm machinery and implements of
29 husbandry on road construction and maintenance machinery, and on such
30 other vehicles, machinery and equipment as may be specified in regu-
31 lations issued by the commissioner. All use shall be in accordance with
32 such regulations. Use of such emblem as a clearance marker or on
33 stationary objects on the highways is prohibited.
34 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
35 it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
36 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
37 tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
38 completed on or before such effective date.
