Moose-crossing signs going digital

The traditional moose-crossing sign has become more a national symbol and a novelty for tourists than a warning taken seriously by drivers.

Research has shown that drivers pay little attention to the familiar sign that warns drivers of moose – so a new system has been developed to help save lives.

Every day drivers hit 18 deer on average. Each collision costs society about NOK 200,000, according to reports from Gemini. Researchers now agree that the familiar signs used to warn for moose do a more effective job as national symbols than preventing collisions.

”When drivers experience … warnings again and again without actually experiencing any danger, they lose trust and respect,” says Lone-Eirin Lervåg, research manager at Sintef in Trondheim.

Lervåg has been in charge of developing a new digital system that will notify drivers through an electronic warning system. The system will warn drivers far enough in advance so that they can slow down and prepare for moose, or traffic.

So far, tests show that drivers paid dramatically more attention to the digital system than the traditional signs. ”The drivers who received digital notifications instantly slowed down 10 kilometers per hour, and kept (that) speed while increasing their level of attention,” says Lervåg.

Source: The Norway Post