Automated Technology Senses, Scares Deer off Railway; 6,000 Saved

Railway operators in the U.K. have used an AI-enabled automatic deer detection and deterrent system to keep nearly 6,000 deer from straying onto rail lines.

Network Rail, which manages the infrastructure and railway network for most of the U.K., partnered with train operator London North Eastern Railway’s innovation team and Innovation Factory to develop the system, a first for the rail industry.  

Deer incursion reports data was assessed to find the best location to trial the new automated deer deterrent system (ADDS) technology. The team identified a one-mile stretch of track between Stoke High Bridge and Stoke Tunnel near Peterborough, where a train passes at speed approximately every five minutes.

The system consists of 127 camera sensors, 90 Audible alarms with ultrasonic alarms and flashing red and white lights and 10 Wi-Fi routers, router receivers and portable power stations.

Installing the ADDS system. Credit: National Rail

Intelligent acoustic and vision sensors that detect deer movements and classify them when approaching the tracks. When a deer is detected, ADDS activates audible and visual alarms to deter the deer.

The AI camera continues to analyze the deer’s movements and behavior until they move away and captures that data to inform future developments. The footage is also streamed in real time to a dashboard, allowing operators to track successful deer deterrence events, complete with timestamps and locations.

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Since the trial began, the system has deterred just under 6,000 deer from accessing the railway, with plans for it to be rolled out further.

Deer captured on the ADDS system. Credit: National Rail

Network Rail figures show that animals trespassed 1,432 times in the 12 months to the end of March, equivalent to four times a day.

Deer caused the most rail incidents of any animal last year, scoring 350, with sheep in second place with 177, followed by birds in general with 172, cows with 156 and swans with 143.

The animals next on the list are dogs, cats, badgers, foxes and pigs. Some of the more unexpected visitors include bees, mice, hedgehogs, a llama and even a famous tortoise.

But by far the biggest trespassers are people with more than 19,300 incidents, equivalent to one every half hour.

“Trespassing on the railway is a serious offense that causes delays to thousands of trains every year and can be very costly for people, causing death and life-changing injuries due to the railways' many hidden dangers,” said Helen Hamlin, operations chief at Network Rail.