This week, the Colorado Department of Transportation (DOT) launched a new wildlife detection system along a stretch of U.S. 160 east of Durango in southwestern Colorado, an area where officials indicate that 70 percent of all reported collisions involve wild animals. Fencing was ruled out as a viable option, and lasers or microwaves were too easily triggered by motion from snow or tree branches. The system chosen is similar to that used to secure prison perimeters. Colorado highway officials are now testing a system that involves a cable buried next to the highway. The cable emits an electromagnetic field that is calibrated to detect large animals. The system also detects cars or other vehicles pulling onto the highway and emits another signal forestalling ignition of the warning system. When an actual elk or deer is detected, special warning signs go on alerting motorists to cut speed and to watch for these wildlife pedestrians, whose very bulk constitutes a menace on the highways. A spokesperson for the DOT noted that the whole system depends on motorists responding, remaining alert, and reducing speed. Officials will monitor the efficacy of this system for the next to three to five years. Cost for the project is estimated at one million dollars. See the official announcement at the Colorado DOT website. Elk-detecting cables may seem pretty offbeat, but you can keep up with the many product announcements in the EMI/EMC sector. Just visit the Interference Technology Product News section.
Colorado DOT Will Use EM-Based Technology to Reduce Elk-Car Collisions
