By STAFF
It is one local woman’s crusade to get residents and visitors to slow down and enjoy the variety of animals who inhabit the area. Christine Siebuhr and her husband have been residents of Cambria for 22 years and have always enjoyed the natural beauty here. But in the last few years, Christine has become increasingly concerned about the number of deer injured and killed on roads in Cambria. And this former elementary school teacher has taken up the cause to protect deer and other wildlife in Cambria.
She laid out some important facts for this staff writer about the tenuous existence of people and deer living in a small community and how to keep both deer and drivers safe, especially with the onset of the fall and winter months with fewer daylight hours.
More car collisions with deer occur during full moons (bucks are more active during full moons, when the sky is least dark), during rutting season (early October through December), and during the days immediately after the end of Daylight Savings Time.
Cambria’s very popular Scarecrow Festival and the Cambria Christmas Market bring into town thousands of additional cars. With three full moons in the coming months, the convergence of all factors is particularly serious. Added to this are the blind curves, narrow streets and roads that unfamiliar to many visitors.
Chrstine noted that many visitors and part-time residents do not understand how much wildlife live in wooded areas adjacent to highly trafficked roads. She added that many residents attest to how much wildlife, including dear, turkeys, foxes, raccoons, and skunks are killed by vehicles within the village limits. And these accidents can occur at any speed. In the recent months, she has placed more than 40 Slow Fawns signs throughout the community at the request of homeowners. With an abundance of wildlife throughout the town and adjacent roads, some residents think the current speed limits are unrealistic.
This quest to make the roads safer for drivers and wildlife has garnered some attention. Currently Christine and local resident Rita Burton have a table at the local Farmer’s Market. They are asking marketgoers who live in the County to sign a petition for “A Safer Cambria for All”.
Christine has been a guest on the Dave Congleton show (KVEC-AM). She has successfully petitioned California Department of Transportation to improve deer warning signage, including on Routes 1 North and South of the village, as well as along the curve of road on Windsor Boulevard before Shamel Park. Ideally, she would like Caltrans to add solar lit deer signs at each of the town that will immediately alert people, especially during the hours of 6 to 9 p.m., when most of the deer related collisions occur.
She, along with Rita Burton, have spoken at a recent San Luis Obispo Council of Community Governments meeting to express concerns about the amount of traffic anticipated as soon as the Christmas Market opens, with many people driving into Cambria who are unfamiliar with how much wildlife is present, and she is scheduled to speak at a SLOCOG meeting again soon.
In an effort to bring attention to speed limits in town she has spoken to Supervisor Bruce Gibson and Representative Dawn Addis about lowering the posted speed limits to 25 miles per hour, as is California law for business, residential and school zones. Currently, the speed limit on many of the town’s streets is 30-35 miles per hour. She has also been working with State and Caltrans to have the speed limit on the stretch of Route 1 that runs through Cambria lowered to 40 miles per hour.
Slowing down will save the lives of deer and other wildlife, but the cost of collisions with deer has a human cost as well: damaged vehicles, secondary accidents related to a deer crossing a road, serious injuries, and even deaths have occurred when a vehicle hits a deer. Slower speeds and more vigilance are the answer.
Christine said, “I will not give up and will continue to advocate for Cambria, safe roads for all”. Meet Christine and Rita at the Farmer’s Market on Fridays in the Veterans Hall parking lot.
