driving cattle on the public road- safety idea???

patspost

Hi folks, first time poster on this forum so go easy on me.

I was driving down the country the other day and got flashed by a car, went around the bend and there was a lad about to bring his cattle out on the road.

I had an idea, maybe suggested before & maybe the product is available,
if you had some portable lights that the farmer could leave on the road at a distance back from where he is bringing cattle out to warn oncomming motorists. Something with a base like a traffic cone so stable with a flashing light.

Is there a market for this product?, maybe it is available already.

49801

patspost wrote: »

Hi folks, first time poster on this forum so go easy on me.

I was driving down the country the other day and got flashed by a car, went around the bend and there was a lad about to bring his cattle out on the road.

I had an idea, maybe suggested before & maybe the product is available,
if you had some portable lights that the farmer could leave on the road at a distance back from where he is bringing cattle out to warn oncomming motorists. Something with a base like a traffic cone so stable with a flashing light.

Is there a market for this product?, maybe it is available already.

I was moving cattle on the road a year or 2 a ago. left two cones on the road at the gap that would give a strong indication for cars to slow down.

when I came back 15mins later running ahead of the cattle they had been nicked!:mad:

M1XR

Yes in an ideal world this would be a great product but our world is rarely ideal.
On the farmers side i believe he wouldn't bother with the extra hassle of bringing cones out, setting them up and then removing them after. Usually you are more focused on just getting the cattle out without them escaping etc.
On the motorists side, I dunno just how much a traffic cone will be heeded. During the summer they are left out as markers for silage crews and people know the roads are busy, but motorists still fly on.

haybob

Lovely idea, be a start getting lads to wear hi vis vests, and while traffic is ment to stop for cattle few seem to know this

the solution is plenty of help, not far to go with a bit of consideration on both sides so where possible to let the traffic go

KatyMac

God be good to the days when everyone was able to drive their cattle on the road with someone on a bike/walking ahead of them. I have three bits of land about 2/3 miles apart and we used to travel the roads so often the older cows knew where they were going once they passed the first turn. They then put on the speed and were arrived nearly before we caught up with them. I have to hire someone every time now an animal has to be moved - its an awful nuisance, but most motorists would mow you and your beasts out of it before they'd even see you.

Markcheese

Those cheap flashing LED cycling lights strapped on a bokety old cone with a printed CATTLE ON ROAD would do a grand job .. But unless someone is standing there waving traffic down most drivers would ignore it .. Even on back roads...

daymobrew

Would a road flare work?
In California the cops would put a load of flares around accidents instead of cones - they are very easy to see at night.

Tmurf

Get the cows to wear highvis vests

bob charles

we move cattle on a back road, one of the ones where two cars can pass but you have to pull over for a lorry to pass. Always having problems getting people of stop slow down so now what I do is when I have the cattle ready to cross the road I part the tractors cross way across the road so no animal can escape and no cars can pass for a minute or two. Stick on the beacon and flaskers. I know what Im doing is illegal but its better than having cattle escaping or damage to the publics cars

20silkcut

Wouldn't it be great if farmers joined up there roadways and a network of internal farm road ways criss crossed the countryside. Fantasy stuff I know.
I know of a farmer who had a few acres landlocked by the motorway and was quoted 30 grand for a 150 metre right of way across another lads field to get to it.

bob charles

20silkcut wrote: »

Wouldn't it be great if farmers joined up there roadways and a network of internal farm road ways criss crossed the countryside. Fantasy stuff I know.
I know of a farmer who had a few acres landlocked by the motorway and was quoted 30 grand for a 150 metre right of way across another lads field to get to it.

fool him for not getting the NRA to give him proper access when the motorway was been built

20silkcut

I am sure he was well looked after this was 2006/7 , the good old days.

hardCopy

daymobrew wrote: »

Would a road flare work?
In California the cops would put a load of flares around accidents instead of cones - they are very easy to see at night.

Would that not scare the life out of the cattle?

I know one farmer who has two gates directly opposite each other on a main road.

They park the tractor one side and the car on the other both with hazards on. Three people in hi-viz with torches and they can't get the cars to even slow down. This is a long straight section with perfect line of sight each way.

I can't imagine cones, lights or flares would make much difference. People don't even slow down for roadworks on the motorway.

grazeaway

49801 wrote: »

I was moving cattle on the road a year or 2 a ago. left two cones on the road at the gap that would give a strong indication for cars to slow down.

when I came back 15mins later running ahead of the cattle they had been nicked!:mad:

used to work drawing silage and the contractor would always a have a few as they kept getting nicked. actully caught a fella taking one away one day as i was cloing out of a field with a load he didnt even stop when i shouted after him. lad i as working for started to put sand bags in side to stop them from being robbed.

we usually get the mother and sisters to stand out on the road if we need to drive them on the field. one time i had the car with the flashers on parked at the top gate with the younger sister who was about 14 at the time. this gob****e came along took no pull passed the car and she had to jump into the ditch to avoid him then he stopped rolled down the window and roared abuse at her. i was coming up ahead of the cows and heard the goings on road was too tight for him to do a u turn. you have seen his face when i got stuck into him. he was a lucky boy not the get dragged out of the car and have the s**t kicked out of him. poor girl was shaking with fright for ages. hope he learned his lesson but i doubt it some how.

Dont be daft

I dont wanna be a prick but what does be going through lads heads at all.

Road flares and traffic lights? WTF? Sure why dont we just airlift them from farm to farm and cut out this road crossing blagarding altogether.

We are split by a major road on the home farm. Have been crossing it for years and the only solution is lots of help. Minimum of three people. Drivers wont stop for people sometimes, nevermind slowing for flashing lights.

We had a motorbike cut straight through a line of about 30 cattle. Just picked a gap and flew through doing about 70mph. It was insane. Cattle scattered in every direction, absolute nightmare.
Have had cars drive straight through. When I was about 14 we had the traffic stopped, cattle about to cross and the 1st car tried to make a break for it and drive through. I roared at him that I'd put me hurl through his windscreen if he did. That softened his cough:D
There have been cases were people in charge of animals have taken the numbers of cars which dont comply with their instructions and successfully had them prosecuted.
A person in charge of animals is one of the few people in Ireland that can make a person stop their car.

who the fug

Can't get over these brain dead drivers, do they not know the damage a kick from a cow can do to a car.

If you love you pride and joy then pull over, and let the animals wander pass .

Markcheese

To be fair a lot of farmers don't exactly help themselves... I used to relief milk and loads of road crossings were on bad bends.. No warning signs , no lights if you were lucky a bit of dirty fencing tape...
In saying that road speeds are way up and no one has patience..

patspost

it must be a pain for the farmers trying to move the cattle allright, plenty of help is the main thing and vehicles with beacons etc, but for a lot of farmers I'm sure they dont have the help.

Bleating Lamb

Vast majority of road users are not aware of fact that ANIMALS BEING MOVED ON ROAD HAVE JUST A S MUCH RIGHTS AS THEY HAVE TO BE ON ROAD and so can not be rushed or excited by a drivers dangerous actions....When I have stock on road I alwayshave adequate help...and make a point of standing out in middle of road just to slow down the people who feel animals shouldnt have right to move to fresh pasture.Might not be a bad idea for road authoritys to maken a TV AD reminding people to heed farmers moving stock.

keep going

as i love to tell people the only two people that can legally direct traffic are a garda or someone moving cattle:D.prob have to do a traffic management course next.at this stage my cows are so used to the road they even go on the left but never use their indicators though

mikemac1

20silkcut wrote: »

Wouldn't it be great if farmers joined up there roadways and a network of internal farm road ways criss crossed the countryside. Fantasy stuff I know.
I know of a farmer who had a few acres landlocked by the motorway and was quoted 30 grand for a 150 metre right of way across another lads field to get to it.

It happens

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Neighbour

The old lad reached an agreement with the neighbor that they could cross each others land.

Went 50:50 on hiring a local with a JCB for clearing three ditches and installing three gates

Works very well!

I don't know much about legal rights of ways, I'd imagine that takes a long time to get established

But for now the arrangement is informal and is working

Without this it's a good 3km roundabout route on a narrow country road and then a busy main road where the drivers do fly around corners.

Better to have the beasts off the road