An accident waiting to happen
"A yellow-and-black triangular sign appears by the roadside. It
says: ‘Animal casualty here within the last week’. Another pony hit by a car in
the New Forest.It is an all-too-familiar story. And it is especially poignant at
this time of year: as the foals are born the risk of accidents increases.New Forest ponies have no road-sense and they will wander out in
front of traffic without warning. Foals can be skittish and, if they suddenly
realise they are separated from their mothers, they will make a dash for it
regardless of the road conditions. Sadly they do not know the Green Cross
Code.
Around 100 animals are injured or killed on the roads of the New
Forest each year. These are not just statistics: each lost animal means distress
for its owner, for the Agister who attends the scene, and for the driver who may
suffer damage to a vehicle or worse.What can be done? Organisations including the New Forest National
Park Authority, the Verderers, the Forestry Commission and the Police work
together on campaigns to raise awareness and reduce the death toll.
The temporary triangular road-signs highlight animal accident
sites, warning drivers of blackspots. A credit card-size animal emergency
hotlines card tells drivers whom to contact if they see an animal accident or if
they are involved in one themselves. A free car sticker encourages careful
driving to safeguard ponies. Animal safety messages are promoted widely in
Forest leaflets, on websites, in talks and even in community radio adverts." Quoted from the National Park Authority
BUT still it does no good. Three foals have been killed within 8 days and just 0.4 miles of each other on the B3078 Fordingbridge to Cadnam Road close to Deadman's Hill.
Perhaps the driver of vehicle registration number E1 DER would care to explain to me why they still think it is okay to speed across the Forest, repeatedly overtaking other vehicles that are keeping to the speed limit.
