Spatiotemporal Analysis of Road Crashes with Animals in Poland

Abstract

This article describes the issue of the influences of the time factor and wildlife populations on road animal–vehicle crashes. The article presents problems associated with animal–vehicle crashes in Poland. They are the subject of many court disputes. For the purposes of the study, data on animal–vehicle road crashes were obtained from the SEWiK database, as well as data on the numbers of animals in hunting districts from 2016–2020. The relationship between the number of road crashes and time was analysed, and the relationships between the numbers of road crashes and the animal populations, as well as the locations, types, and categories of the hunting districts, were analysed as well. The factors related to changes in the wildlife populations, road crashes in previous years, and the lengths of the road networks were also analysed. The research shows no relationship between the abundance of a particular species and the number of road crashes. Instead, there is a correlation between the number of crashes in previous years and the road network length.