The 35-year-old former Spurs winger was warming up for PT Prachuap's game at Pattani on Saturday when the driver lost control of the vehicle.
Townsend went down under the heavy roller, with the driver only stopping once the player's legs were trapped.
In footage which has since been widely shared online, Townsend attempts to push the roller off as the driver leaps out to help.
Townsend, who also played for Crystal Palace and Everton during an itinerant career, later made light of being run over.
"It turns out Stoke away wasn't so bad after all," he wrote on social media.
Townsend won 13 caps for England.