Now the moose population is large in parts of northern Norway. On Thursday, there was an accident in Senja municipality where three people had to be taken to hospital after one driver swerved in front of a moose. This led to a head-on collision. In the same area, Kjell Arvid Berg caught a moose hit last weekend. He says that in the past there have been several signs in the area that have alerted motorists to moose sightings, but that these are now out of service. He thinks that is too bad. – In addition, there are no street lights on the site. So in the evening it’s even more scary to drive there, he says. The conditions are perfect for the king of the forest in many places in northern Norway at the moment. Photo: Josef Benoni Ness Tveit / news – Tried to swerve away Bjørn Sverre Antonsen sat in the car that sent the moose into the ditch. He says that luckily both he and the elk went well. – I know there are a lot of moose in the area, so I pay a little more attention when I drive there. If it had stood still, I wouldn’t have seen it at all, it was so well camouflaged. Antonsen tried to swerve away from the moose and thought it would turn, but it didn’t. This resulted in a minor collision between the car and the moose. – Fortunately, it was quickly back on its feet, he says, and adds that the car only got a few small scratches in the front paintwork. The speed limit on the site is 60 km/h. – The signs have no effect Business manager within transport in Troms and Finnmark county municipality, Øyvind Strømseth, confirms that the signs are not in operation at the moment. – These were signs established by the Norwegian Road Administration. We have also had agreements with the local game board, which has put up its own signs. The reason why the signs are out of service is a research report which has shown that the signs have virtually no effect, he explains. – The average speed was reduced by just one kilometer per hour. We do not want to spend money on measures that have no effect, as the economic situation is now. Signs like this can alert motorists when moose have been observed in an area. But research has shown that they have very little effect. Photo: Arild Moe / news What we know works, are measures on the sidelines, says Strømseth. – In other words, you clear forests along the roads, so you get better visibility. A lower speed limit also works, but that is what the Swedish Road Administration decides. So far, they have not reached a decision on whether forest clearing along the roads is something they want to start with on the county roads most exposed to moose. Antonsen, who drove the car in the video, is positive about the idea of removing forest to give motorists better visibility. – If there had been three meters of visibility instead of two, I would probably have seen the moose earlier and stopped in time. It was in this area that Bjørn Sverre Antonsen drove the moose. In the same area, there was an accident on Thursday evening where a driver had to swerve away from a moose. Several people were injured. Fears extreme moose danger Deputy chairman of the Wildlife Board in the neighboring municipality of Målselv, Tor Eriksen, points out that the moose start their migration into the municipality when it starts to snow again. – We encourage you to be very careful. Both roe deer, moose and reindeer are very active in the morning, afternoon and evening grazing. The moose danger can be extreme, says Eriksen, who asks people to slow down. Tor Eriksen is deputy chairman of the Wildlife Board in Målselv in Troms. Photo: Torkil Stoltz / news – Lower your speed. We should be happy that no human lives have been lost in game collisions so far. Take it easy, you always get there. And the activity will probably only increase, says Eriksen. At the moment it is cold, but dry and with little snow in Troms. – There are a lot of moose in the mountains and forest belts at high altitude. They will move downwards when the snow eventually comes.
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Watch the video where the car hits the moose that falls out of the way – news Troms and Finnmark
