Downtown Carson City signs aim to combat urban deer accidents

New deer warning signs have gone up along Carson City streets to help warn motorists and cut down on injuries or the deaths of deer roaming the community.

Transportation Manager Patrick Pittenger said one for northbound traffic and another for southbound motorists were placed on Carson Street in the downtown area, with two more for motorists heading north or south on Stewart Street. He said more signs went up in the area where Ash Canyon Road meets Winnie Lane on the west side. They are to the west, north and east of the intersection there, a location where deer are often seen.

“We already have them up,” he said, noting it came after discussion about the urban deer problem and accidents that take their toll on those local wildlife wanderers about town. “We put up a total of seven signs.”

City Manager Nick Marano said the downtown signs were put up because deer seem to be in that area overnight and then move in the morning when traffic is picking up as the work day gets under way. He said some accidents do occur but an attempt to cut them down is the reason for the signs.

“There aren’t really that many,” he said, noting recent internal city government discussion about how to handle crippled deer or dispose of those killed in accidents. He said Public Works crews will take the remains of those killed to the landfill and in most cases a contractor will be used to help determine what course to take with injured deer, including whether or not to put the animal down.

Marano said when a 911 report comes into dispatch, the fee-for-service contractor would be called.