Improved deer signage being tested
You’re driving down a snow-covered road on a quiet winter evening, and suddenly out of the darkness a deer sprints from the woods and collides with the hood of your car.
But what if deer-car collisions could be prevented? The Minnesota Department of Transportation is continuing to explore ways to reduce the number of deer-related crashes occurring on Minnesota roads and highways.
When a deer crosses a beam between infrared detectors, a beacon flashes to warn drivers.
One idea is to improve signage. Currently, there are more than 500 standard deer signs in the state, said Robert Weinholzer, state programs administrator for Mn/DOT. But because there are so many standard deer signs, drivers tend to ignore them.
In 2001, Mn/DOT tested motion-activated technology in Marshall. When triggered, a beacon flashed a warning to drivers. However, because so many deer crossed the road each day, the beacon’s batteries would die in short periods of time. A second round of tests were performed in the human factors lab at the University of Minnesota in 2004.
In December 2006, Mn/DOT began another round of testing in Camden Park, south of Marshall. A few changes have been made in order to increase effectiveness. The problem in 2001 was that the batteries on the beacons consistently needed to be replaced, which drove up the cost. Initially the 2006 project was going to attempt to completely run the project with solar power, Weinholzer said, but ultimately it would make the project too expensive.
Mark Gallagher, an associate at SRF Consulting Group, Inc., worked on the project to try to make it more cost-effective. The beacons will now use LED lighting, which takes less power. Solar power will only be used to recharge the beacon’s batteries each day.
“We have been assured that the beacons will not lose their charge unless there are over 150 crossings a day,” Weinholzer said.
About 20 to 50 feet away from the side of the road, a series of infrared detectors sets up a beam from detector to detector. When the movement of a deer breaks the beam, it sends a message to the beacon, and the beacon will flash to warn drivers, Gallagher said.
It is possible for other things to break the beam and cause false flashes from the sign, such as birds and small animals, he added.
The tests will be conducted from December 2006 to November 2007. If successful, the inexpensive and easy-to-deploy system may be implemented throughout the state.
Gallagher said other states have tested different types of motion-activated deer signage, but their costs have been much higher and systems more complicated.
Ultimately, the goal is to prevent as many deer collisions as possible in Minnesota and do it in a way that is fairly inexpensive to initiate throughout the state, Weinholzer said.
—Elizabeth Giorgi, LTAP intern