HIGHWAY ROADKILL, SAFETY, AND ASSOCIATED ISSUES OF SAFETY AND IMPACT ON HIGHWAY ECOTONES

As transportation networks, especially highways, increase and as the volume of traffic and speed increase, it is inevitable that conflicts between animals and vehicles will increase. Currently animal and bird collisions with motor vehicles in the United States is intensifying into a problem of major significance. There is no current central source for information or overview on the problem of animal/vehicle accidents. The information gathered for this report is based upon sporadic studies done in the past 20 years and from responses to a letter of inquiry sent to 50 state departments of transportation and a similar number of departments of natural resources. Results of this inquiry are reported in the following areas: the magnitude of roadkills as a result of large animal/vehicle accidents; factors that contribute to large animal/vehicle accidents; personal injury as a result of large animal/vehicle accidents; property damage; disposal of large animals killed on highways; small animals and birds killed on highway rights-of-way; endangered species being killed on highway rights-of-way; prevention and control measures; effectiveness of measures used to reduce animal/vehicle accidents; highways as ecotones; and highway corridors for tourism.

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• Supplemental Notes:
  • This is an unreviewed report prepared for the Task Force on Natural Resources (A1F52), Transportation Research Board.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Cook, K E
  • Daggett, P-M
• Publication Date: 1995-5

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: 33 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Animal vehicle crashes; Birds; Control; Data collection; Deer; Endangered species; Guides to the literature; Habitat; Injuries; Literature reviews; Loss and damage; Mammals; Measures of effectiveness; Prevention; Property; Right of way (Land); Road kill; State departments of transportation; Surveys; Tourism; Wildlife
• Uncontrolled Terms: Effectiveness; Property damage; State departments of natural resources
• Old TRIS Terms: Ecotones; Personal injury
• Subject Areas: Environment; Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies; I80: Accident Studies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00734511
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Mar 4 1997 12:00AM