We’re entering the peak season for deer-vehicle collisions. That from Major Dan Lonsdorf with the Wisconsin State Patrol, with a reminder that June has high potential for car-deer crashes. “There’s so much traffic out there, that we’re certainly going to see the kind of spike that we see every year at this time when the deer start moving,” says Lonsdorf.
There are plenty of tips for drivers to minimize the chances of hitting a deer – but Lonsdorf said this may be the most important. “If you see a deer, and it’s crossed the road, don’t look at where the deer is going, look at where it came from,” Londorf advises. “Often a second deer is coming, and that’s the one you’re going to run into if you’re not paying attention.” And, he says, slow down and pay more attention to what’s on the roadway and less to what’s happening inside your car.
Dane County had the most motor vehicle vs. deer crashes reported in 2009 with 873. Waukesha County was second with 680, followed by 648 in Shawano County, where more than half of all reported crashes involved deer.