Moose Driving - Canadian Statistics:
- New Brunswick’s motor vehicle registrations in 2000 were 562,563. Therefore, approximately 1 in 796 New Brunswick drivers will hit a deer and 1 in 2278 drivers will hit a moose. [i]
- While accidents are reported year round, more than 70% occur between May and October. The three most critical months are June, July, and August.
- The risk of an animal-vehicle collision occurring is 2.7 times greater during the peak versus the non-peak period.
- The risk of a severe injury is 1.5 times greater during darkness than daylight.
- The risk of a severe injury is 1.8 times greater at highway speeds.
- The risk of a severe injury or death when involved in a moose-motorcycle accident is 12 times greater than for all other passenger vehicles combined.
- 9% of injured occupants were not wearing seatbelts when the accident occurred (excluding accidents involving motorcycles). This group accounted for 29% of fatalities.
- The risk of a fatal injury is 8 times greater for those individuals involved in an accident and who are not wearing a seatbelt.
- According to an RCMP report in Newfoundland, the average estimated vehicle damage is $3,000.
- The likelihood of injury is twice as high between dusk and dawn as compared to daytime.
- Moose on the right side of the vehicle are avoided more often than those on the left because drivers concentrate more on the right. Therefore, it important to scan both sides of the road.
- Don't let yourself be distracted. A driver who is alone and concentrating on the road is less likely to strike a moose, than is a driver whose attention wanders while talking to a passenger.
- Remember most accidents occur on clear nights and on straight road sections, maybe because drivers are more cautious on curves or in poor weather.[i]
- The New Brunswick Department of Transportation (NBDOT) analyzed accident data from 1995 to 2000 and found a total of 4,239 deer-vehicle collisions and 1,482 moose-vehicle collisions over the 6 year period (G. Violette, NBDOT, pers. comm. 2002). This represented 8.6% of the total 66,279 vehicle accidents in the province over those 6 years, and translates to an annual average of 707 deer and 247 moose collisions. According to Statistics Canada (2003), New Brunswick’s motor vehicle registrations in 2000 were 562,563, therefore approximately 1 in every 796 New Brunswick drivers will hit a deer and 1 in 2278 drivers will hit a moose. [ii]
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