The Effects of Reduced Speed Zones on Reducing Bighorn Sheep and Elk Collisions with Vehicles on Yellowhead Highway in Jasper National Park

Jasper National Park (10,878-sq. km.) is located in the Rocky Mountains in the west-central part of the province of Alberta. The Yellowhead Highway stretches east to west across the width of Jasper National Park for 77km through the Athabasca and Miette river valleys. The Yellowhead Corridor is a main transportation corridor through the Rockies second only to the Trans-Canada highway. The Jasper National Park portion of the Yellowhead Highway is a 2-lane paved highway with a maximum speed limit of 90km/hr. Traffic volumes fluctuate seasonally, maximum volumes occur from May to September. Traffic volumes from 1983-1998 increased 50% from 800,000 to 1.2 million vehicles per year. The Canadian National Railway (CNR) follows the same route. CNR traffic is consistent throughout the year; daily averages are 35 trains/day or 12,775 trains/yr. The number of trains has decreased marginally over the study period because of longer loads (CNR Jasper dispatch, 1998). The Yellowhead Corridor is below 1350 meters in elevation, the majority of the corridor traverses the montane ecological zone. This zone is the smallest life zone in Jasper National Park at 7% but is the most biologically productive containing the greatest biodiversity of species and communities in Jasper National Park. A variety of wildlife from grizzly bears ( Ursus arctos) to white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus) are present adjacent to both transportation corridors. Wildlife vehicle collisions have increased dramatically on both the Yellowhead and the CNR. During 1998 there were 113 recorded collisions on the highway and 60 on the CNR. The majority of animals involved in collisions are ungulates In 1991 3 Slow Down for Wildlife Zones were installed on the Yellowhead highway reducing the maximum speed from 90km/hr. to 70km/hr. in these zones. This report assesses the effectiveness of lower highway speed zones on reducing elk ( Cervus elaphus) and bighorn sheep ( Ovis canadensis) collisions with vehicles. The results of this report are based 16 years of data from 1983-1990 (pre-installation, 8 years) and 1991- 1998 (post-installation 8 years).