Mother wins battle for moose fencing on Route 7

A Saint John-area mother got her wish for wildlife fencing on a particularly dangerous stretch of Highway 7, where her daughter's car hit a moose last spring.

Cathy McCollum's daughter was not seriously injured in the June crash, but the experience prompted McCollum to begin collecting names on a petition demanding the government do more to prevent car-moose collisions on the single-lane highway between Fredericton and Saint John.

The narrow, twisty stretch of highway between Geary and Grand Bay is prone to moose-car collisions, especially during the summer.

On Wednesday, Liberal Transportation Minister Denis Landry stopped by McCollum's home to give her the news that the province would start erecting a fencenext June. The project is expected to take two years to complete.

"I went to visit her, and she was really, really happy," Landry said.

Making good on election promise

During the recent provincial election campaign, Liberal Leader Shawn Grahampromised to spend $21 million tofence 300 kilometres of highway in New Brunswick, including the 26-kilometre section where McCollum's daughter had her accident.

When his party won the Sept. 18 vote with a majority of three seats, Graham approved McCollum's request.

She had collected more than 10,000 signatures on her petition between July and September.

"She said to me, 'What should I do with my petition?' I said 'I don't know. Keep it as a souvenir?' She was very impressed to see the minister of transportation at her door giving her this news," Landry said.

Landry would not speculate about the cost of the project, but says it will include underpasses and overpasses so moose can cross the road without danger from traffic.

Crashes involving vehicles and moose have increased steadily across New Brunswick since 2002 despite a safety campaign launched by the provincial government warning drivers to slow down.

There are approximately 300 moose-vehicle accidents in New Brunswick every year, many of them fatal, and most of them occurring between the months of May and September.