Every day across Victoria, native animals are struck and killed on our roads. From wombats and kangaroos to echidnas, birds, and gliders—no species is immune. Roadstrike is one of the most widespread but least talked-about causes of wildlife death in the state. But for every statistic, there's a story: a joey left orphaned, a driver left shaken, a rescuer arriving just moments too late.

Now, we have a rare opportunity to push for real change. The Victorian Parliament is conducting an official Inquiry into wildlife roadstrike—and they want to hear from you. The Animal Justice Party has already made a detailed submission, and now we’re calling on supporters to add their voice too.

🦘 Why This Matters

Wildlife collisions aren’t just tragic for the animals—they impact people too. Drivers face trauma, vehicles are damaged, and responders are stretched to breaking point. But these incidents are preventable. With the right infrastructure, better laws, and support for the rescue sector, we can reduce roadstrike dramatically.

This Inquiry is a chance to shift from crisis response to proactive prevention. With your voice, we can help embed wildlife protection into road planning, expand proven technologies like virtual fencing, and ensure our laws reflect the value of animal life. But we need to act before submissions close.

📣 Make a Submission by Friday 30 May

You don’t need to be an expert—just speak from the heart. The most powerful submissions are often personal. You might write about:

• An animal you helped or saw after a roadstrike

• How wildlife collisions have affected your wellbeing

• What you want the government to do differently

👉 Submit your response here

📘 Download the AJP Wildlife Roadstrike Submission Guide

Need help writing your submission? We’ve created a step-by-step guide to make it easy.

Our Wildlife Roadstrike Submission Guide includes:

• A breakdown of the Inquiry Terms of Reference

• Examples of what to say and how to say it

• Key facts, talking points, and ideas drawn from the AJP's recommendations

• 122 plain-English policy suggestions supporters can use

Whether you're not sure where to start or just want a few strong points to include, this guide has everything you need.

📥 Download the guide below ⬇️⬇️

💻 Need Help Writing Your Submission?

Join us for a special online session designed to help you make a submission to the Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into wildlife roadstrike in Victoria. Whether you’ve already started your submission or don’t know where to begin, this session is for you.  

🗓️ Wildlife Roadstrike Submission Support Webinar
📍 Hosted by AJP Victoria
🎤 Featuring: State Manager Ben Schultz & Advocacy Manager Vasundhara Kandpal
🕕 Monday 26 May 2025
🔗 ADD TO YOUR CALENDAR 

📄 What’s in the AJP Submission?

The Animal Justice Party’s submission highlights that wildlife roadstrike is one of the most tragic yet preventable causes of animal harm in Victoria, with an estimated 20,000 collisions annually in our state alone. These incidents not only devastate native species like kangaroos and wombats, but also cause significant emotional, financial, and ecological harm. Our submission urges a shift from reactive to proactive measures—embedding wildlife protection into every stage of road design, planning, education, and law. We’ve outlined 22 evidence-based recommendations across seven focus areas to reduce harm to both animals and motorists.

We’re calling on the Victorian Government to:

1. Amend the Wildlife Act 1975 and Road Safety Act 1986 to establish a legal duty of care requiring motorists to stop, assist, and report injured wildlife.
2. Integrate wildlife safety awareness into the VicRoads licensing process, including testing materials and L-plate education.
3. Fund and deliver a coordinated, state-wide wildlife road safety campaign.
4. Require VicRoads and local councils to incorporate wildlife risk assessments and monitoring in all road planning and upgrades.
5. Establish a publicly funded Wildlife Rescue Fund to support operational costs for licensed shelters and carers.
6. Introduce a formal reimbursement scheme for wildlife roadstrike responders.
7. Formally recognise wildlife rescue as an emergency service in Victorian law.
8. Develop accredited, statewide training programs for rescue personnel.
9. Develop and customise virtual fencing based on research, acoustic deterrents and customised organic communication technology (e.g., CherrpTM), and AI-driven detection systems in known collision hotspots. 
10. Mandate fauna-sensitive road infrastructure (overpasses, underpasses, fencing, and signage) in all new projects intersecting with wildlife habitat. 
11. Retrofit high-risk roads with escape ramps, speed breakers, wildlife-proof fencing, dynamic warning signage and removal of rub-rails.
12. Install point-to-point speed cameras in wildlife zones operating dusk to dawn. 
13. Reduce posted speed limits in recognised wildlife corridors and hotspots. 
14. Ensure wildlife collisions are clearly covered under comprehensive vehicle insurance policies.
15. For identified locations with a high frequency of animal collisions, install smart signage that illuminates at night via a PV battery charging system.
16. Mandate Wildlife Impact Assessments for all new infrastructure and housing projects near or through native habitat.
17. Embed green corridors and fauna movement paths into the Victorian Planning Scheme to mirror or extend existing Retained Environment Networks (RENs).
18. For local government, mandate a ‘Wildlife Overlay’ to be incorporated into the planning process, to integrate the aforementioned considerations.
19. Pilot a multi-region trial of wildlife mitigation systems based on successful international models. 
20. Develop a road ecology framework informed by global best practice and regularly evaluated.
21. Create a centralised, open-access wildlife roadstrike database. 
22. Require mandatory reporting of roadstrike data from road maintenance crews, local councils,  and HBV (“Hit By Vehicle”) data from emergency services, and insurers.

The AJP’s submission calls for urgent action to prevent wildlife roadstrike—one of Victoria’s most avoidable causes of animal death and driver harm. We urge the Committee to make prevention the priority by embedding wildlife-sensitive design into infrastructure, protecting habitat, and investing in proven solutions before harm occurs. The tools already exist—what’s needed now is the political will to act.

📄 Download and read our full submission below.

🧡 This Is Our Moment

With your voice, we can protect thousands of animals each year, ease the burden on our rescue sector, and make our roads safer for everyone. Submissions close soon—don’t miss your chance to create change.

👉 Make your submission now