Development and evaluation of strategies to reduce the incidence of deer-vehicle collisions (phase III) : operational field trail, part A.

Details

• Creators:
  Osborn, David A. ; Stickles, James H. ; Warren, Robert J. ; Miller, Karl V.
• Corporate Creators:
  Daniel B. Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources.
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Federal Highway Administration
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  • Traffic accidents
  • Deer
  • Fences
  • Field tests
  • Global Positioning System
  • Animal behavior
  • Right of way (Traffic)
  • Seasons
  • Wildlife crossings
• Publication/ Report Number:
  FHWA-GA-14-1136
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Georgia
• Corporate Publisher:
  Georgia. Dept. of Transportation
• Abstract:
  To better understand deer movements that might contribute to deer-vehicle collisions (DVC), we conducted preparatory field work ; necessary for an operational field trial of the efficacy of a 1.2-m woven-wire fence with a top-mounted outrigger. We worked with ; officials from GDOT and the Federal Highway Administration-Georgia Division to select a 5-mile segment of I-20 near Madison, ; Georgia. During February-June 2012 and January-April 2013, we captured 32 deer within the 5-mile test roadway and fitted them ; each with a Global Positioning System collar, programmed to collect 24 locations per day, and monitored surviving deer until April ; 2014. Each deer was classified as: (1) frequent user, (2) occasional user, or (3) rare user based on highway right-of-way (ROW) ; utilization. Frequent users (359.5 + 41.7 m) were closer (P < 0.01; F2, 27=8.46) to the median of I-20 than occasional (715.3 + 236.4 m) ; and rare (766.6 + 72.3 m) users, but occasional and rare users were the same distance (P > 0.05) from the median. Within the frequent ; user group, the percentage of ROW locations for individuals ranged from 1.7% to 25.8%. Deer ROW use occurred primarily during ; nighttime hours with about 37% of locations within the ROW occurring between 2200-0300 hours. Increased ROW use by female ; deer that were frequent users during May and June was likely due to females selecting the ROW for parturition. We also evaluated the ; annual distribution of DVCs in Georgia based on records of DVCs from 2005-2012 (n = 45,811) to identify peaks in DVCs for each of ; Georgia’s 159 counties, compared to deer breeding data from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. We observed high ; concurrence among timing of peak DVCs, peak conception, and peak rut movement. To potentially reduce DVC risk, we recommend: ; (1) lethal removal of frequent ROW users, (2) warning motorists of the increased risk of encountering deer in the ROW during deer ; breeding seasons and while driving late at night, and/or (3) modifying ROW habitat to help maintain ROW fences and reduce food ; and cover resources that can attract deer to roadways.
  More +
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  SPR00-0008-00-478
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/28676/dot_28676_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.46 MB]
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:beddfed76cc811378199b1a2ab6989bcae8debe4c01a6af7ad888b1d79138670