Developing a Road Risk Model for Large Animal Crashes in Virginia: A Safe System Approach to Cost-Effective Safety Improvements

Details

• Creators:
  Hamilton, Ian ; Donaldson, Bridget M.
• Corporate Creators:
  Virginia Transportation Research Council (VTRC) ; VHB/Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc.
• Corporate Contributors:
  Virginia. Department of Transportation
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Animal Vehicle Crashes Bear Crash Risk Benefit Cost Analysis Countermeasures Deer Deer Crash Risk Large Animal Crashes Road Risk Model Roads Safety State Government Agencies Wildlife-vehicle Collisions Wildlife Crossings

  More +
• Publication/ Report Number:
  VTRC 26-R41
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States ; Virginia
• Edition:
  Final Report: Jan. 2025–May 2026
• Corporate Publisher:
  Virginia Transportation Research Council (VTRC)
• Abstract:
  In 2020, the Virginia General Assembly enacted the Virginia Wildlife Corridor Action Plan (WCAP; Code of Virginia § 29.1579), which directed the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and other state agencies to identify wildlife corridors and areas with a high risk of wildlife-vehicle collisions to prioritize wildlife crossing projects that improve driver safety and habitat connectivity. Elements of this directive align with VDOT’s adoption of the Safe System Approach, which emphasizes proactive road design and management to reduce crash risk. Meeting both WCAP and roadway safety objectives requires reliable tools to identify roadway segments where wildlife crashes are most likely to occur. However, police-reported crash data substantially underrepresent large animal crashes and do not account for road and landscape factors that influence crash risk. The study developed a predictive large animal road risk model to identify Virginia road segments with elevated risk of white-tailed deer and black bear crashes. The model integrates police-reported crash data with road characteristics, traffic volumes, land cover, and other variables to produce crash risk estimates across the road network. To address crash underreporting, correction factors were evaluated using additional crash data sources, and these factors were incorporated into model outputs and subsequent benefit-cost analyses. A benefit-cost calculator spreadsheet was developed to support the evaluation of the appropriate level of investment based on expected safety benefits.
• Format:
  PDF
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:2120340e48c6cb248731d5ab3d7fd1f98f2f9183ef12fee12485de1b037a25a8b35b000611049fef44c4f491608da35328c4c56d068aaacd7fe737705a99a8e3
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/91124/dot_91124_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.77 MB ]