PHOTO: Highway commission denies request for roadside cow memorial in Arkansas

PETA is asking the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department if it can install this headstone next to Arkansas 5 in Baxter County.
PETA is asking the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department if it can install this headstone next to Arkansas 5 in Baxter County.

The Arkansas Highway Commission has denied a request from one of the nation's leading animal-welfare groups to construct a memorial for cows killed in a truck crash last month.

In a letter Monday to the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department Director Scott Bennett said its proposed memorial — a 5-foot-tall tombstone next to the scene of the wreck on Arkansas 5 in Baxter County — would not be allowed because of safety reasons.

“Not only are they considered to be a distraction to drivers, but are also a hazard for vehicles that inadvertently lose control and depart from the roadway," Bennett wrote. "In addition, a tombstone memorial would interfere with routine maintenance operations."

The animal-welfare group had said the tombstone would have been far enough away to not interfere with traffic, Arkansas Online previously reported.

As part of PETA's request, the proposed memorial featured a cow and the statement "In Memory of the Cows Who Suffered and Died at This Spot, September 2016. Try Vegan," referencing a Sept. 25 truck crash that "killed and grievously injured numerous cattle."

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