STATEWIDE – Motor vehicle crashes involving wildlife were ranked as the third leading cause for crashes behind speeding and inattentive driving. In the southwest corner of the state, including US160 and US 550, motor vehicle crashes involving wildlife were ranked as the number one cause of accidents*. The Colorado Department of Transportation, the Southern Rockies Ecosystem Project, the Colorado Division of Wildlife, the Colorado State Patrol and the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association have once again partnered to bring awareness to motorists via the “Wildlife on the Move” campaign: this time of year, in particular, is the time to be aware of wildlife migrating down to lower elevations—and moving across the highways.

While there are recognized major seasonal migration corridors for deer and elk, motorists must be aware that animals can cross roads anywhere and at anytime, said Scott Wait, senior terrestrial biologist for the Colorado Division of Wildlife.

"Deer are big and elk are huge. A collision with a big game animal will cause major property damage to a vehicle, and both can cause serious injury to motorists," Wait said.

Motorists also should remember that big-game animals travel together at this time of year. "Animals are really moving now. If you see one animal, assume there are more. Don't get fixated watching one deer," Wait said.

There were 35,302 recorded incidents of wildlife-vehicle collisions along state and interstate highways between 1986 and 2004. The number of wildlife-vehicle collisions reported by Colorado State Patrol is known to underestimate the actual number of animals killed because it only represents accidents actually reported. CDOT has begun collecting data from maintenance patrols on the number of wild animals killed and removed from the roads. Preliminary maintenance patrol roadkill counts show that roughly twice as many animals are killed as are reported to CSP. This data will serve as a supplement to CSP crash data in the future.

“Data aside, it’s safe to assume that when you’re traveling in any mountainous or rural setting you may encounter wildlife on or near the roadway,” CDOT Traffic & Safety Engineer Sean Yeates said. “CDOT places wildlife related signing in locations where there has been a high incidence of collisions. The goal is to notably improve driver safety, and we hope motorists are not becoming immune to the warnings.”

The number of collisions peaks between dusk and dawn, from the middle of October until the first week in November. The worst times of day during the peak are 8:30 PM and 6:00 AM.

Overall, crashes with wildlife are on the rise. Factors contributing to the rise include expanding road networks to accommodate new land development; increasing traffic flows; and increasing traffic pulses in the morning and early evening. Unless specific efforts are made to alleviate these collisions, the trend is likely to continue to increase.

“Crashes with wildlife are a symptom of a greater issue involving land use, transportation, and growing communities,” said Monique DiGiorgio of the Southern Rockies Ecosystem Project (SREP). “Wildlife is on the receiving end of these issues, resulting in human and wildlife fatalities as well as the fragmentation and loss of wildlife habitat.”

Driver Safety Tips
"We know that the deer can't read the deer-crossing signs," said Colonel Mark Trostel, Chief of the CSP. "However, you can, and the signs are there because this is an area where deer congregate and migrate. The best advice is to slow down. We cannot stress that enough—if motorists slow down, stay alert and use high beam headlamps as much as possible at night to illuminate the areas from which deer will enter roads, they will have a far better chance at reacting to an animal on the road. And, always buckle up."

Other safety tips, listed in the "Wildlife on the Move" leaflet include the following: stay especially alert between dusk and dawn; scan ahead and watching for movement; look for other animals nearby; be ready for animals to change direction; obey traffic signs; and, as always, never drink and drive. These, other safety tips and wildlife information can be found at http://restoretherockies.org/on_the_move.htm. To ensure that the location of the crash and the type of wildlife hit is recorded in the state's database, drivers that are in an wildlife-vehicle collision should report the crash to the State Patrol by calling *CSP (star key and 277) — a free cell phone call.

Insurance should also be considered when it comes to animals on the roadway. “If you hit a deer while driving, you must have the optional comprehensive coverage on your auto policy to pay for the damage to your car," says Carole Walker, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association (RMIIA). “Otherwise you will end up paying for car repairs out of your own pocket. The average repair cost of a deer-car collision is nearly $3,000 and these crashes add up to an average of $1.1 billion a year nationwide in vehicle damage.”

The Wildlife on the Move team that includes SREP, CDOT, CSP, CDOW and RMIIA has distributed more than 75,000 driver safety tip sheets and posters to further education and outreach efforts.

For more information and to access to SREP’s media room please visit: http://www.RestoreTheRockies.org.

*Accident statistics from the Colorado Department of Transportation Traffic & Safety Division; raw data comes from statewide law enforcement agencies. All enforcement agency 2005 accident data is not yet available—statistics in this press release are based on 2004 data.