Collisions With Wildlife Avoidable: One Man's Opinion

Thursday, August 03, 2006 03:45 AM

There was yet another moose killed last weekend at the top of Sintich hill on Highway 97 south.

The incident has become so normal that it did not make the news in spite of damage to a truck and a car.

The accident however raises a much bigger question; just how much attention do drivers pay when traveling in areas frequented by wildlife ?

As a driver, am I diligent or just plain lucky?

I have driven several million miles in my life time including many on the prairies where encounters with wildlife are pretty routine.

Collectively on the vehicles that we currently drive, we have a combined total of about 660,000 kilometers and not one of them has been in a collision with large wildlife. So its raises this question, do people pay attention when driving at twilight or for that matter do they pay attention at any time, to what is going on in the ditch in front of them?

There can be little doubt that in some cases a collision with a deer, moose or bear is inevitable, but I increasingly have a more difficult time understanding why the collision rate continues to climb unless of course drivers are not paying attention to what is going on in front of them, or the fact that a large animal is standing in the ditch and could cross the road at any moment.

Earlier this year, I slowed down on a highway because I had spotted an animal in the ditch. Another motorist sped by me, that was a testament to their driving ability.

I’m Meisner and that is one man’s opinion.

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Posted on Thursday, August 03, 2006 03:45 AM in Views by Ben Meisner

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Comments

Posted by: Chadermando on August 3 2006 3:39 PM

I agree more needs to be done to avoid accidents with wildlife on our area highways.

I would like to see something like a purple marker in the ditch where ever an animal trail crosses the highway that has had incidents in the past. Most wildlife incidents happen in the same place as a result of these wildlife trails.

I hit the first animal ever last winter for myself. It was just after dusk and a rain storm with a wet dark road. A doe stepped out from the ditch, which I tried to avoid, when a 6-point buck stepped out behind the doe and left me with no highway. I got on the brakes and hit it square doing no damage to the truck, but braking its hind legs as it bounced back into the ditch.

A week later to the hour in the exact same spot a logging truck driver was killed by a doe that jumped before impact and went through the window forcing the ruck off the road killing that truck driver with his load of logs. At the scene is a well traveled deer trail near a corner on the highway that is frequented by deer on almost a nightly basis.

A marker of game trail intersections with the highway could save lives of not only humans but the animals as well.

Posted by: Marty on August 3 2006 4:10 PM

I drive probably 10 times the mileage per year of the average person.
And some of these strikes are avoidable, but sometimes i do not think they are.
I watched a pickup hit a moose last winter, and the driver stood no chance of avoiding it.
The moose ran down a small hill on the side of the HWY and just simple ran in front of the truck.
It was heading home from the mcbride area, and the fellow ( i forget his name) was towing a trailer with a couple of snowmobiles on it, and when he saw it had maybe 1 second to the time of impact.

Had it been me, I know even though I am a good driver i would have hit it as well.

That was the last animal strike i actually saw, and again i repeat, no way to miss that moose.
Heck not even enough time to have hit the ditch to avoid it.

Posted by: diplomat on August 4 2006 11:36 AM

A couple of years ago we were returning from Quesnel in the evening and I spotted something black moving in the ditch maybe a hundred yards away, on my side of the road (highway 97).

I just barely managed to come to a stop in my lane as a black bear mother ambled across the road in front of my car. The cub was following her closely and just passed our front bumper when a woman driving a van PASSED our stopped car on the RIGHT, rather fast and half on the shoulder!!!

Oncoming traffic had already stopped as well and the two bears made it across the highway and up the sidehill without any problems.

The stupid woman who passed us on the right missed hitting the bear cub by not more than three feet or so!

Oh how we wished at that moment that a cop car would have been there to take her to Prince George in handcuffs!