Woman's petition takes aim at moose-car collisions

A woman in New Brunswickhas collected nearly 2,000 signatures on a petition calling on the government to do more to preventmoose-car collisions on Route7 between Saint John and Fredericton.

The government has cleared trees near the road and put up warning signs, but Cathy McCollum said people are still worried about hitting moose.

Her daughter hitone of the animalsearlier this month, but she was not seriously injured.

"All kinds of people are terrified to drive up through the woods at night," she said. "One guy [I know] will not [drive at all]. If he's up that way, he will stay at his sister's house because he's too scared to drive. He doesn't want to take the chance of having the encounter with the moose."

McCollum said putting up fences inhigh-risk areas may be the answer.

Five years ago, the province installed an electronic fence along a stretch of Route 11 near Dalhousie. The cost was$16,000 per kilometre for installation and $12,000 per year for maintenance. Since then, only one collision between a vehicle and moose was reported in that zone, compared to four moose collisions and two with deer in a nearby area.

Dozens of moose accidents

So far this year, there have been nearly 100 accidents involving moose and vehicles on New Brunswick highways. Last month, a 16-year-old girl was killed on Route 10 between Fredericton and Minto when the car she was driving collided with a moose.

At the time of the girl's death, Transportation Minister Paul Robichaud said the province would consider erecting more fences, but ithadn't yet committed to the idea.

Crashes involving vehicles and moose have increased steadily across New Brunswick since 2002 despite a safety campaign launched by the provincial government warning drivers to slow down.

There are approximately 300 moose-vehicle accidents in New Brunswick every year, many of them fatal, and most of them occurring between May and September.

In addition to circulating a petition,McCollum is asking people to send her their stories about moose encounters.

"I'm a determined woman," she said. "I just want to prove to the government people want something done now, not two years down the road."