Deer mating season is here again. AAA says drivers should be careful, but "when you see a deer in the road, hit it."
FORT LEE, N.J. -- Drivers in the suburbs are seeing deer everywhere and officials say we're coming up on the most dangerous time of year for collisions with deer.
In the shadow of the George Washington Bridge, visitors to the Fort Lee Historic Park might spot a deer, or two. In fact, deer are being spotted pretty much everywhere lately, especially on the roads by drivers and even cyclists.
"Sometimes deer will cross the road, and you're coming head on on a bike. It's a serious matter," said cyclist Victor Owen.
In a freak accident Wednesday, a deer jumped off a Route 3 overpass in Clifton and crashed into the windshield of a car below on Route 21.
The driver had minor injuries, but the deer was killed.
The approaching fall rut, or deer mating season, will cause deer to cross roads more frequently.
Deer are likely to be most active in the early morning and around sunset, when visibility is limited and more drivers are on the road.
AAA Northeast's Robert Sinclair Jr.'s advice to drivers sounds counterintuitive.
"If you swerve to the right, you could hit a tree or a poll. If you swerve to the left, you could go into oncoming traffic," said Sinclair. "So the advice is when you see a deer in the road, hit it. Don't want to jam on the breaks hard because that promotes the nosedive of the front end. And when and if you do hit the animal, it can roll up the hood and through the windshield."
There are more than 15,000 collisions between vehicles and deer in New Jersey every year.
More than 30,000 deer hits are reported each year in New York, most during the rut.
Most collisions with deer do not result in injuries to people, but the car repairs can be very expensive. Officials urge drivers to slow down.
