Infrastructure Safety Issue

The Problem: Wildlife–Vehicle Collisions

A persistent, recurring transportation safety issue affecting thousands of kilometres of Canadian highway infrastructure annually.

Section 1

The Scale of the Problem

Wildlife–vehicle collisions are not isolated events. They represent a persistent, nationwide transportation safety issue affecting Canadian highway networks year after year.

Thousands of collisions occur annually on Canadian highways

Rural and semi-rural corridors are disproportionately affected

Deer, elk, and moose collisions dominate severity statistics

Collision patterns repeat year after year on the same corridors

"This is not a random problem — it is a predictable, corridor-level risk."

Deer canada, on an asphalt of a boreal forest of North America route. Risk of accident by car colision between the wild animal. The car collisions with Deer Crossing Road, causing injuries and fatalities among both deer and humans.
Beware of moose sign in Sweden
Section 2

High-Risk Corridors Are the Real Issue

The majority of wildlife collisions are not evenly distributed. They are concentrated on a limited subset of unfenced highway corridors.

Typical High-Risk Corridors

Experience approximately 5–10 wildlife collisions per kilometre per year

Severe Hotspots

Experience materially higher rates, representing acute risk exposure

Known to Authorities

These corridors are well documented by transportation authorities but remain unfenced due to cost and timelines

"The problem is not lack of awareness — it is lack of deployable, interim solutions."

Section 3

Why Traditional Solutions Fall Short

Existing mitigation approaches have fundamental limitations that prevent corridor-scale deployment.

Wildlife Fencing

  • Costs $1M–$5M per kilometre
  • Multi-year planning and construction timelines
  • Not feasible for network-wide deployment

Signage & Driver Awareness

  • Low effectiveness in practice
  • No measurable collision reduction at scale
  • Relies on voluntary driver behavior modification

Reactive Maintenance

  • Responds after collisions occur
  • Does not reduce underlying risk exposure
  • Perpetuates recurring annual costs

"There is a large gap between 'do nothing' and 'build permanent infrastructure.'"

Section 4

The Economic Burden Is Systemic

Wildlife–vehicle collisions create recurring, multi-sector costs that compound annually across the transportation system.

Government

  • • Emergency response
  • • Roadway cleanup
  • • Rehabilitation costs
  • • Liability exposure

Insurance Carriers

  • • Property damage claims
  • • Actuarial loss exposure
  • • Premium adjustments
  • • Risk pool impacts

Emergency Services

  • • Ambulance dispatch
  • • Trauma care
  • • Traffic disruption
  • • Resource allocation

Commercial Fleets

  • • Vehicle downtime
  • • Repair costs
  • • Safety programs
  • • Route modifications

Public Safety

  • • Injury risk
  • • Fatality probability
  • • Secondary collisions
  • • Community impact

Regulatory/Legal

  • • Liability assessments
  • • Compliance reviews
  • • Legal proceedings
  • • Reporting obligations

"These costs recur every year on the same corridors."

Section 5

Fatality Risk Changes the Equation

While property damage represents the majority of incident costs, wildlife–vehicle collisions carry a non-zero fatality risk that materially affects system-level risk assessment.

Collision Severity Factors

Larger animals (moose, elk) and rural highway speeds significantly increase injury and fatality probability

Risk-Based Evaluation

Transportation agencies and insurers evaluate safety investments based on risk exposure, not just collision counts

Fractional Reductions Matter

Even modest reductions in fatality probability deliver material value in actuarial and safety assessments

"Transportation agencies and insurers evaluate safety investments based on risk exposure, not just collision counts."

Non-Zero

Fatality Risk per Collision

Large Animal Collisions Higher Severity
Rural Highway Speeds Increased Risk
Recurring Exposure Annual Impact
Section 6

The Unfunded Gap

A clear operational gap exists between current conditions and funded long-term infrastructure plans.

Thousands of Kilometres Unfenced

High-risk corridors remain unprotected across provincial highway networks

Infrastructure Years Away

Permanent fencing requires multi-year planning, funding approval, and construction cycles

Collisions Continue

Annual collision patterns persist on known corridors during planning and construction delays

Budget Constraints

Capital funding limitations prevent simultaneous deployment across all identified corridors

No Interim Solution

Agencies lack a scalable, deployable, auditable interim mitigation approach

Costs Compound Annually

Each year without mitigation adds to the cumulative economic and safety burden

"This gap represents both a public-safety risk and an economic inefficiency."

The question is not whether a solution is needed—it is whether a deployable, cost-effective solution exists.

Section 7

What an Effective Solution Must Do

Any viable interim solution must meet specific operational, economic, and regulatory criteria to be deployable at corridor scale.

Rapid Deployment

Deployable within weeks, not years—operational before the next collision season

Cost-Effective at Scale

Economically viable for multi-kilometre deployment across network corridors

Operationally Compatible

Integrates with existing maintenance operations without specialized infrastructure

Regulatory Defensibility

Environmentally sound and aligned with provincial regulatory frameworks

Measurable & Auditable

Produces documented, quantifiable outcomes to justify renewal decisions

Risk Reduction Focused

Capable of reducing collision frequency without requiring complete elimination

The Solution Criteria Are Clear

"The problem is not unsolvable—it has simply lacked a solution designed for the realities of highway networks."

Section 8

A Solution Designed for This Gap

Wildlife Shield™ Systems was designed specifically to address this gap—providing a corridor-level, interim risk-reduction solution that delivers measurable economic and safety value while long-term infrastructure plans progress.

Deployable Within Weeks

Not years or decades

Corridor-Scale Economics

Cost-effective at network level

Infrastructure-Compatible

Integrates with existing operations

Auditable Outcomes

Measurable, documented results

Learn how Wildlife Shield™ addresses each operational requirement