If things go as planned at a Minnesota State Patrol meeting Wednesday, area farmers can expect their beet trucks to get a lot more attention next fall.
Patrol officials are strongly considering a "saturation" campaign during the 2004 sugar beet harvest in which as many as two dozen extra truck inspectors would check for service and weight violations on beet trucks, said Sgt. Rick Fjestad, Red River Valley Scale supervisor.
In northwest Minnesota, 19 counties share 15 commercial vehicle inspectors, making it difficult to show a presence during the frantic two-week beet harvest, Fjestad said.
"We don't have enough people," he said.
Of the thousands of beet trucks running through the Red River Valley this past harvest, only about 60 were spot-checked by Minnesota inspectors, according to numbers from the state patrol. About a third of the trucks had an equipment violation or were overweight. One driver had a suspended driver's license, Fjestad said.
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In Clay County, inspectors can fine truck owners $320 for multiple defects and $130 to $770 for being overweight, depending on the degree of the violation.
Inspectors are not sworn officers, so they cannot pull over a truck to inspect it. To reach a farm truck, inspectors usually set up portable weigh stations and wave the driver over. If the truck doesn't stop, the inspector can call a patrol officer, who would then have cause to pull the truck over.
Like any other commercial vehicle, farm trucks must get a certified inspection every year, Fjestad said. The inspection, which can be done at any truck dealer, covers three pages of items, from hoses and steering to lights and brakes.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Dave Forster at (701) 241-5538
