Manchester Rivals Neighbors For Deer Crashes, Per Statewide Data

MANCHESTER, CT — Manchester has accumulated more crashes involving deer than its neighbors as the amount rises in Connecticut, new statistics show.

According to AAA Northeast, deer crashes in Connecticut "are increasing by leaps and bounds."
There were 460 deer crashes in the Nutmeg State from October to December 2022, the equivalent of one deer crash every five hours, according to an AAA analysis of data from the UConn Crash Data Repository.

That number represents the greatest number of crashes during since 2018. The deer season also seems to be starting earlier, with 131 deer collisions in October 2022, the most since 2014.

The shoreline seems to be the state hotbed with Guilford leading the pack at 47 collisions reported in 2022. Groton was runner-up, with 33. Avon, which is also a hotbed of bear sightings, was third with 31.

All tabulated, 1,023 vehicles hit deer on Connecticut roads in 2022. That's up from 934 the year before.

From 2018 to 2022, Manchester has had 79 deer crashes, three more than Windsor, but a lot more than its other neighbors with highways — Vernon (13), Tolland (6), East Hartford (30) and Bolton (2).

Here are the five-year deer crash numbers for Manchester, courtesy of the UConn Crash Data Repository.

• 2018: 11
• 2019: 6
• 2020: 17
• 2021: 22
• 2022: 23
• Total: 79

See the statewide Deer crash table here.