New Holland has developed a TL5 that is accessible to people with lower limb disabilities.
A couple of bespoke solutions have been made in the past, but as far as we are aware New Holland is the first mainstream manufacturer to develop a tractor that is accessible to wheelchair users.
Produced at CNH Industrial’s Curitiba plant in Brazil, the TL5 Accessible was created together with mobility company Elevittá, Arteprima and Senai, with assistance from a New Holland customer, who uses a wheelchair.
Optionally available on new 80, 90 and 100hp models (platform can be retrofitted to tractors from 2019 onwards), the joystick operated lifting platform enables the operator to enter and exit the tractor unaided. They can then access the tractor seat and use the adapted machine controls. The internal space is said to be the same as a standard TL5.
It is estimated that 2.9 million of the 7.8 million Brazilians with some form of physical lower limb disability live in rural areas. “People with disabilities, including those who live and work in the countryside, want to remain as independent as possible,” commented Eduardo Kerbauy, vice president of New Holland Agriculture for Latin America, who added that the modified TL5 will help eliminate barriers that today make it impossible for many farmers to get on a tractor.
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