Published: August 30, 2008 11:34 pm      

In a flash

Can special warning signs cut deer-vehicle collisions?

CHARLESTON — On a moonlit night, a pickup truck is cruising along a deserted, two-lane blacktop in the country when the driver spies a special sign beginning to flash up ahead.

Instinctively, the man lets off the gas pedal and slowly depresses the brake so that his truck comes to a near halt.

Then he comes to a complete stop, and sure enough, his headlights trap a huge buck prowling the meadow.

Had he not been warned, it might have resulted in another of those endless close encounters of the fourth kind in West Virginia. Another crash with a deer, the kind of run-in that accounts for a nation-high one-in-63 such accidents in the Mountain State.

Sure, other states have a higher number of deer-vehicle collisions, but West Virginia’s rate is the worst in the country.

A visit to Indiana has inspired Sen. Ed Bowman, D-Hancock, to enlist the help of the Division of Natural Resources in exploring a means of at least reducing the number of deer accidents.

While in Hoosier land, Bowman spotted some new, high-tech signs along the side of a road.

“When the sign is flashing, an animal is nearby,” he said.

“I was intrigued by that because, obviously, I think, anybody knows, especially in the eastern part of the United States — West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Ohio — the problems we’re having with deer collisions and the deaths that are caused. Extensive damage is caused.”

In a recent interims meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee, Bowman took the first step by asking the DNR to provide the panel with some information on the new signs.

Bowman said he understands the signs resulted from research at a college in Indiana.

“This is something that, I believe, would reduce the vehicle deer collisions,” the senator said.

“Again, we’re talking about saving lives. We’re talking about saving their property. And quite frankly, my thoughts are initially, if that be the case, the biggest beneficiary, other than those who may save a life, are the insurance companies.”

Bowman would like to see executives of major carriers in West Virginia discuss the signs and, particularly, if the insurance companies would foot the bill for the warning signs.

“They would be the beneficiaries because, obviously, any accident that occurs is revenue out of their funds,” he said.

“I think it’s something we should take a look at. Whether it’s something we ultimately implement, only time will tell.”

Sensors embedded in the signs detect any motion, so when a deer is meandering close by, the lights begin to flash.

“I don’t know how close the animal has to be,” Bowman said.

“But I think in terms of if you’re driving down a highway at nighttime and you can’t see if an animal coming, but yet the lights start flashing, it indicates an animal is nearby. Naturally, you’re going to slow down. You’re going to be cautious. You’re going to be aware. And that’s your benefit and your family’s benefit.”

For now, all West Virginia uses are the old-fashioned, black-and-yellow “deer crossing” warning signs that don’t flash, hum, whistle or otherwise provide anything more than silent words on sheet metal.

A few years back, Bowman recalled, more than 100,000 deer were victims of roadkill in Pennsylvania. Apparently, nothing has changed in the Quaker State — an Internet site says it leads the country in the number of total kills.

Others in the top 10 in number of deer-vehicle collisions were Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia, Minnesota, Virginia, Indiana, Texas and Wisconsin.

When he served as Weirton’s mayor, Bowman inaugurated the first-ever controlled bow hunt within the corporate limits. Since then, his idea has been copied by several other West Virginia municipalities to control burgeoning deer herds.

“The reason we implemented that was for the very same reason I speak of — we had a great number of collisions with deer and accidents that occur,” he said.

“All I’m asking is that we take a look at it, we explore it, and then we make our decision whether we move forward or not.”

For many, the death of a loved one in a single-vehicle accident has lacked closure as to the reason, but Bowman feels some highway fatalities can be blamed on deer.

“In many instances, where accidents in which someone was killed, it’s more or less a mystery what happened,” he reflected.

“And the suspicion is that it could have been a driver trying to avoid hitting a deer. I believe anyone can talk about their experience of ... hitting a deer or ... almost hitting a deer, and how frightful that was, especially when you have your family in the car.”

— E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com