Wild animals represent a problem for road safety. Every year, in Spain, around 14,000 traffic accidents are recorded due to the presence of animals on the road, especially deer, wild boars and dogs, according to a study commissioned by the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) and the Ministry of the Interior.
This report adds that around 50% of drivers suffered a risky situation due to an animal over the course of a year and 6% were involved in an accident. The text of the document also states that 94% of motorists saw animals on the road while driving.
All these figures underline the problems involved in the presence of uncontrolled animals on the roads and the fatal consequences that can arise from it. According to RACE, the impact of a car at 60 km/h against a deer generates a force upon collision equivalent to the weight of a 5-tonne elephant. But not only colliding directly with an animal has serious consequences. Most accidents occur when trying to avoid animals.
The placement of acoustic and light signs on the roads where the most accidents involving animals are recorded can be an effective strategy to contain road accidents. The Government of Extremadura is experimenting with a new system of beacons that are added to others that already exist in the region, with the aim of reducing accidents with wild animals.
Through the General Directorate of Road Infrastructures, the Extremaduran government has placed new wildlife deterrent beacons between kilometer points 8,800 and 9 of the EX-206 highway. The signs are in the testing phase, so their effectiveness will first have to be analyzed before installing them on other roads in the region.
The system is made up of a set of beacons that are activated and emit a signal when they detect the simultaneous presence of an animal and a vehicle. Each beacon opens 160 degrees and has an activation radius between 13 and 17 meters, emitting acoustic and light signals that alert animals and prevent them from approaching the road. In addition, they also warn the driver of the presence of fauna.
The beacons are located at a distance of 20 meters from each other, completely covering the front where animals can access the roads.
This device has been created by the company Visever, with the collaboration of the University of Castilla-La Mancha and the Hunting Resources Research Institute, and has not entailed any additional cost for the Government of Extremadura. According to the regional government, the project is part of the improvements to the contract awarded for the execution of various exploitation operations on the Extremadura road network.
In addition to this experimental test on the EX-206, other roads in Extremadura are equipped with a device to warn of the presence of animals on the road. In this case, these are light panels installed in specific sections of the N-432, A-66 and A-5 that light up when they detect the proximity of a lynx that has previously been fitted with a tracking collar.
This intelligent signaling system was implemented at the end of last year as part of the measures adopted after the process of repopulating these areas with Iberian lynx specimens.
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