Wkoppa
Member
How many deer vehicle accidents do we need to have before it becomes important?
Here in Michigan they publish a number closer to 45,000 for the annual deer/vehicle accident total. Typically there are a handful of fatalities and they are usually riders.
If someone was to monetize the cost of vehicle damage, law enforcement dollars documenting these accidents, work time lost getting your vehicle and/or yourself repaired and lost deer hunting activities it would be significant.
It makes you wonder when you hear about all this work being done to develop driver-less cars to reduce accidents and the AMA beating the drum on Ethanol. Reducing deer vehicle accidents doesn't get a mention.
If $3,000.00 in total cost - vehicle damage+law enforcement time+lost work time+lost hunting opportunities+ cleaning up the highway time= total cost of $135,000,000.00 per year (in Michigan). Who knows what the real number is.
Federal dollars are available to reduce animal mortality through the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP). TAP dollars are also used for non-motorized trails, historic preservation and some other things. While I don't have specific knowledge of what dollars were used I would bet that Florida used that pot of money to put what I call wildlife fences up on much of US 10 west of Tallahassee. They are 10 feet high and you don't see any roadkill on that section of highway. One of the reasons I take that route into Florida. North of Orlando on I-75 you may notice an overpass with trees growing out of it. It is an animal overpass - not a vehicle overpass. You also see these in the Canadian Rockies along with tunnels under the highway. We should have motorcycle advocacy groups acknowledging their efforts to make their roads safer for motorcycling and encouraging their members to spend their time and vacation dollars in those locations. Moreover, if I knew who to write a letter to in Florida or Bnaff I would.
You can't fund wildlife fences, over/underpasses everywhere but you could be doing some of that each year to reduce the money we are spending on the problem. Wouldn't it be nice to know where the roads are that have been treated to reduce vehicle/deer accidents when your doing your trip planning. When I see new highway construction taking place and they install a new four foot fence (cattle fence) I just shake my head. What would the incremental cost be for a wildlife fence? Maybe someone feels good about not having a lot of vehicle/cattle accidents.
I don't think the insurance companies are motivated to press on the issue because they make their mark up on your extra comprehensive coverage that the present system encourages. The law enforcement people don't have any leverage on what highway projects are selected by their state departments of transportation. And - we have any number of supporters for the driver-less car concept looking at the opportunities for selling new hardware and the AMA will be using their efforts to fend off E-15.
Its easy to get angry about this when you have lost friends to deer/motorcycle accidents.
To end this on a personal note my lifelong riding buddy (since 1967) was taken out by a deer while we were riding south of Winnipeg. Broke both arms and both legs but today he is OK - but not riding. If you need to get screwed together we highly endorse the hospital in Grand Forks, ND. Lastly, if your a guy, there are a couple very important things that you can't do with two broken arms. Real important things.
Wayne Koppa
#71,449
Here in Michigan they publish a number closer to 45,000 for the annual deer/vehicle accident total. Typically there are a handful of fatalities and they are usually riders.
If someone was to monetize the cost of vehicle damage, law enforcement dollars documenting these accidents, work time lost getting your vehicle and/or yourself repaired and lost deer hunting activities it would be significant.
It makes you wonder when you hear about all this work being done to develop driver-less cars to reduce accidents and the AMA beating the drum on Ethanol. Reducing deer vehicle accidents doesn't get a mention.
If $3,000.00 in total cost - vehicle damage+law enforcement time+lost work time+lost hunting opportunities+ cleaning up the highway time= total cost of $135,000,000.00 per year (in Michigan). Who knows what the real number is.
Federal dollars are available to reduce animal mortality through the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP). TAP dollars are also used for non-motorized trails, historic preservation and some other things. While I don't have specific knowledge of what dollars were used I would bet that Florida used that pot of money to put what I call wildlife fences up on much of US 10 west of Tallahassee. They are 10 feet high and you don't see any roadkill on that section of highway. One of the reasons I take that route into Florida. North of Orlando on I-75 you may notice an overpass with trees growing out of it. It is an animal overpass - not a vehicle overpass. You also see these in the Canadian Rockies along with tunnels under the highway. We should have motorcycle advocacy groups acknowledging their efforts to make their roads safer for motorcycling and encouraging their members to spend their time and vacation dollars in those locations. Moreover, if I knew who to write a letter to in Florida or Bnaff I would.
You can't fund wildlife fences, over/underpasses everywhere but you could be doing some of that each year to reduce the money we are spending on the problem. Wouldn't it be nice to know where the roads are that have been treated to reduce vehicle/deer accidents when your doing your trip planning. When I see new highway construction taking place and they install a new four foot fence (cattle fence) I just shake my head. What would the incremental cost be for a wildlife fence? Maybe someone feels good about not having a lot of vehicle/cattle accidents.
I don't think the insurance companies are motivated to press on the issue because they make their mark up on your extra comprehensive coverage that the present system encourages. The law enforcement people don't have any leverage on what highway projects are selected by their state departments of transportation. And - we have any number of supporters for the driver-less car concept looking at the opportunities for selling new hardware and the AMA will be using their efforts to fend off E-15.
Its easy to get angry about this when you have lost friends to deer/motorcycle accidents.
To end this on a personal note my lifelong riding buddy (since 1967) was taken out by a deer while we were riding south of Winnipeg. Broke both arms and both legs but today he is OK - but not riding. If you need to get screwed together we highly endorse the hospital in Grand Forks, ND. Lastly, if your a guy, there are a couple very important things that you can't do with two broken arms. Real important things.
Wayne Koppa
#71,449
. I can remember when it was a very rare thing to see a deer in our neck of the woods, and I wish that was the case now. Oh yea, we are beginning to see wild hogs here too! Not feral pigs...I mean the real wild hog with the long teeth & nasty temperament. Great, just great.
