United States Department of Transportation
i
Development and evaluation of devices designed to minimize deer-vehicle collisions : phase III.
-
2015-09-01
-
[PDF-3.09 MB]
Details:
-
Creators:
-
Corporate Creators:
-
Corporate Contributors:
-
Subject/TRT Terms:
-
Publication/ Report Number:
-
Resource Type:
-
Geographical Coverage:
-
Corporate Publisher:
-
Abstract:To better understand factors that might contribute to deer-vehicle collisions (DVC); we captured 32 deer within a 5-mile test
roadway along Interstate 20 near Madison, Georgia and fitted them each with a Global Positioning System collar to monitor their use
of the highway right-of-way (ROW). 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 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 statewide data on deer breeding
dates. We observed high concurrence among timing of peak DVCs, peak conception, and peak rut movement. We also evaluated
DVC risk based on the temporal pattern of DVCs; traffic volume; deer movement rates; and known frequency, timing, and landscape
features associated with deer road-crossing activity. Our results indicated that DVC risk for individual motorists was high throughout
the entire nocturnal period, not just during the crepuscular period as would be suggested solely by the incidence of DVCs without
considering traffic volume. Also, the increased frequency of road crossings by deer in low-traffic, forested areas may lead to a greater
risk of DVC than suggested by evaluations of DVC frequency alone.
To potentially reduce DVC risk, we recommended: (1) targeted removal of deer that were frequent ROW users, (2) warnings
issued to motorists about the increased risk of encountering deer in the ROW during late-night travel, and (3) modifying ROW habitat
to help maintain ROW fences and reduce food and cover resources.
For assessing the timing of the breeding season at a county or regional scale, DVC data are cost effective and less susceptible to
measurement biases compared to traditional methods employing deer fetus measurements. In addition, mapping the peak occurrences
of DVCs can be used to strategically warn motorists of increased risk within a few weeks of peak deer breeding at the county level.
We also conducted an operational field trial to retrofit top-mounted outriggers to existing 1.2-m, woven-wire, ROW fencing.
Despite repairing the existing ROW fence and adding the outrigger, access to the ROW by deer was not prevented, but these results
were based on a small sample size of deer that had previously accessed the ROW. Repair and maintenance of existing ROW fencing
for conversion to an outrigger-style fence likely was unjustified as neither cost-efficient nor adequately effective at preventing deer
from accessing the ROW. However, the outrigger-fence design might be justified for new fence construction in un-wooded terrain
and when used in conjunction with traditional 2.4-m deer exclusion fence to provide deer within the ROW a route of escape.
-
Format:
-
Funding:
-
Collection(s):
-
Main Document Checksum:
-
Download URL:
-
File Type:
