Urban kangaroos on postal patrol. Photo: About Regional.
With thousands of accidents every year, Canberra is one of the worst spots in Australia for wildlife collisions. But one Canberran thinks there’s a solution.
She believes the answer lies near Batemans Bay where the Eurobodalla Shire has installed a virtual fence which it says has dropped collisions from five a week to less than one a month.
Now, Aisha Bottrill is gathering signatures for a petition to the Legislative Assembly calling for the rollout of the same virtual fences for high-accident zones in the nation’s capital.
The petition is sponsored by Greens MLA Jo Clay who is calling for a trial of the fencing along Erindale Drive near Tuggeranong.
“Canberra experiences a high rate of wildlife-vehicle collisions, with kangaroos being one of the most affected. Rangers commonly record over 1000 kangaroos called in as dead or injured by the road each year, and it’s estimated that actual collisions may be twice as many as reported sightings. These incidents not only harm wildlife but also pose significant risks to motorists,” the petition states.
The petition to the Legislative Assembly claims Canberra experiences a high rate of wildlife/vehicle collisions. Photo: Legislative Assembly Petitions.
Virtual fencing alongside the road uses posts that flash strobe lights and emit an alarm when oncoming headlights are detected. The noise in theory alerts animals ahead of traffic, reducing collisions with kangaroos, wallabies and wombats.
Eurobodalla Shire Council has published figures it says shows a consistent reduction in roadkill.
Aisha said the figures grabbed her attention after she became tired of accidents and near misses.
“They saw a 90 per cent reduction [of incidents] on the road they tried it on. I thought it would be a great idea to get something like that here. And if it’s successful, hopefully roll it out to other wildlife collision areas,” she said.
Aisha Bottrill says kangaroos have the right to be protected. Photo: Supplied.
Data from insurers suggests Canberra is one of the worst accident zones for wildlife in Australia.
With about 2500 collisions each year, the city ranked number one for the fourth year in a row in 2020.
Despite the figures, Aisha didn’t feel the government was taking the issue seriously.
“It doesn’t seem like anything so far has been trialled to try and reduce the wildlife collisions on these roads. It’s not only dangerous for wildlife, but for people too,” she said.
Aisha Bottrill is siding with kangaroos on the issue of road safety. Photo: Supplied.
Since the success of the Eurobodalla program, other councils have looked at the technology for their own hot spots. But the program is not cheap.
The first 1.1-kilometre section of road near Long Beach cost $11,531, a second 5.7-kilometre section cost $57,000. But proponents including Aisha say the program will pay for itself.
“Virtual fencing is relatively cheap compared to other things, such as wildlife overpasses. I thought it’s something the government should be able to easily commit to, at least a trial, and then it will sort of pay for itself because insurance claims and damaged cars can be costly,” she said.
“If you can just install something that costs only about $10,000 per kilometre and it significantly reduces the wildlife collisions, I think it’s pretty cost-effective.”
So far, more than 400 supporters have signed the petition which will be up on the Legislative Assembly’s website until November. It needs 500 signatures to be further debated in the Assembly.
Aisha hoped MLAs would see the petition as a worthwhile technology to trial in Canberra.
“You don’t have to care about wildlife to want to reduce wildlife collisions. Even if you just care about road safety, this is something I think everyone can get behind. I hope the ACT Legislative Assembly can see the value of trialling virtual fencing here.”
Sixty per cent of animal collisions occur from May to October. If you hit an animal, pull off the road and call Access Canberra – 13 22 81, RSPCA – 02 6287 8100 or ACT Wildlife – 0432 300 033 (in the ACT). In NSW, call WIRES – 1300 094 737 or LAOKO (Snowy Mountains) – 02 6456 1313.
