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Like many locals, I often travel the Trans Canada Highway around dusk. This becomes particularly common during the short days of winter. Last Friday while driving home from Banff, I had two close encounters with elk along this stretch of road. After barely avoiding venison on my bumper, I began to wonder about the numbers of animals killed by traffic along this highway.

It seems that the problem has been getting worse between the Highway 40 junction and Banff on both the Trans Canada and the 1A highways. Fast moving cars and less than cautious drivers are resulting in increased numbers of road kills each year.

Along the Trans Canada Highway, it's primarily the elk and mule deer that are the victims. Often wintering along the highway, these animals are particularly susceptible to being hit. The weekend traffic along this stretch of highway is very high and the 110 km speed limit only helps to contribute to the numbers. There have been many suggestions about a reduction in the speed limit along this section of highway in order to help reduce these numbers. The highways provides some nice grazing for these large animals and as a result, large groups tend to accumulate along its margins. The fences within the park boundaries have helped, but unfortunately animals often get out of the fenced areas and onto the roads. 

This problem is particularly bad in the early and late hours of daylight. The animals are most active at these times and the visibility is at its worst. There are other options other than reduced speed limits. An extension of the park fencing system would help keep animals on the shoulders and away from traffic. Better signage would also help make people aware of the problem and hopefully slow them down at danger spots (although elk don't always appear at elk crossings). The final option is better lighting along the highway and we all know how probable that one is. 

In addition to the elk problem, there are approximately 150 bighorn sheep wandering the slopes above the 1A highway, particularly around Gap Lake. The problem here is that the sheep are active during the daylight hours and so are susceptible to being hit at any time--especially along the winding blind corners of this highway.