Study Finds Montana Has Highest Risk on the Roads

If you’ve ever been behind the wheel on a Montana backroad when a deer suddenly bolts across the pavement, you know the feeling. It’s a rush of panic that comes out of nowhere. At night, you expect it. You scan the ditches for glowing eyes, hands tight on the wheel, bracing for movement. But when it happens in broad daylight, it’s almost worse. You’re relaxed, maybe sipping coffee, not expecting anything, and suddenly the road is alive in front of you.

Montana Ranks #1 for Deadly Animal Related Crashes

A new nationwide study has revealed what many of us in Big Sky Country already know: animals on the road are a serious danger. Montana ranks number one in the United States for the percentage of deadly crashes caused by live animals. Between 2018 and 2022, 21.17% of all fatal crashes here involved an animal. That’s 29 tragic lives lost in just a few years, out of 137 crashes involving non-fixed objects.

Sharing Montana’s Roads With Wildlife

The wide open spaces here mean that we share the roads with wildlife constantly. Deer, elk, moose, even the occasional bear, our highways cut right through their home. And unlike city traffic or weather conditions, these moments can’t be predicted. One second you’re driving with the mountains in view, the next your world tilts because of something darting out of the trees.

Montana’s Risk Far Outpaces Other States

Montana’s numbers are stark when stacked against other places. North Dakota, which comes in second, records just 12.73% of its deadly crashes involving animals, nearly half our rate. Wisconsin follows with 12.30%. On the other end of the spectrum, Hawaii logged a flat 0.00%. Not a single fatal crash there involved an animal during that same time frame. For us, it’s a reminder of how much wildlife is woven into daily Montana life, for better and for worse.

When Statistics Become Montana Stories

These statistics aren’t just numbers. They’re stories of families forever changed, of drivers doing their best to avoid the unthinkable in a split second. Anyone who has driven late at night on I-90, or taken a winding road out to Red Lodge, knows how quickly a routine trip can turn dangerous. Sometimes it feels like the animals know exactly how to step into your headlights at the worst possible moment.

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Staying Alert on Montana’s Wild Roads

While we can’t eliminate the risk, we can respect it. Staying alert, especially during dawn and dusk when animals are most active, keeping speeds reasonable in high risk areas, and remembering that in Montana, the unexpected is often just around the corner. Out here, where the wilderness meets the roadway, it’s part of what makes driving both beautiful and frightening.