Road Safety

Due to their sheer size, speed & escalating numbers, deer are now a major danger on our local roads.

In 2015 deer overtook cattle as the fourth most common animal collision reported to the RACV in Victoria.

Deer are now commonly seen beside and crossing the roads in our area, and local panel beaters have noted an increasing number of deer related repairs.
Deer are a serious concern to motorists due to their absolute lack of road sense and to their size and speed. A fully grown sambar can weigh over 400kg and, with a high centre of gravity, this can be a lethal combination. This means that in a frontal collision at speed, the body of the deer will likely come over the bonnet, through the windscreen and into the cabin of the car. Even the smaller fallow deer at up to 200kg would be a serious threat. Australia has already had its first fatal deer accident, although fatal accidents are well known in North America.
Some general advice:

• deer are more active between dusk and midnight, and at dawn, so either avoid driving at these times or slow down
• the worst time of year is in the autumn when deer are mating and so are more likely to be moving between areas looking for a mate
• motorcycle riders are particularly at risk due to the sheer size of the animals
• drivers of the newer hybrid and electric cars are also at increased risk: these cars are much quieter, so deer have less warning to move away from the road.

Deer-vehicle collisions have been an ongoing issue in Europe and the USA for decades, where a number of methods are being used or trialled to overcome this problem, from exclusion fencing to flashing lights alerting the presence of deer on the road and more. Some councils in Victoria have now installed deer warning signs in addition to the usual kangaroo, wombat and emu signs. In the end, along with trying to keep deer numbers down, a combination of these methods may be required to minimise the impact of deer on our roads.