Crying fowl Crying fowl (November 19, 2004)

Resident wants road signs for turkey traffic
by Teresa C. Brown

It's not a sign of the times but one to save a turkey. If Pleasanton resident Herman Lewis prevails, there will be a new sign around town: one reminding motorists to slow down and watch for fowl movement.

"It's our duty to make sure they are protected," Lewis said of the turkey flocks that gather around town.

Lewis is concerned about the welfare of the gobblers, which are occasionally struck and killed by motorists. He has suggested that the city install turkey-crossing signs, akin to deer-crossing signs, along roadways to protect the birds from vehicles.

Wild turkey flocks congregate in places like the Pleasanton Memorial Gardens Cemetery on Sunol Boulevard as well as along Foothill Road and on Vineyard Avenue, he said.

"This particular one on Sunol and on Vineyard both have a lot of turkey traffic," Lewis said.

"Foothill is a deathtrap for turkey and deer," said Roy Ficken, animal control officer for Pleasanton, particularly for deer.

In other areas of the city, animal control does not get many turkey calls. "Now and then" they receive calls to pick up dead turkeys along Vineyard between Pleasanton and the Ruby Hill area, Ficken said.

Mike Tassano, of the city's traffic engineering department, said the city is considering Lewis' sign suggestion.

However, the process includes having the state Fish and Game Department affirm there are enough turkeys to warrant signage plus federal committee approval of a sign, Tassano said. To his knowledge, there is not a standardized turkey-crossing sign.

If approved, the city can produce and install the signs, at a cost of about $50 each, Tassano said.

In addition to the stretch of Sunol Boulevard in front of the cemetery, Lewis believes several signs are needed on Foothill Road between the staging area on the Ridge, near the Castlewood golf course, as well as near the intersection of Bernal Avenue and Foothill.

"I think signs are important," Lewis said. "Last year there were 40-45 birds," he said of one flock that frequents the Sunol road area.

As younger birds join the flock, the number crossing the roads will increase, and they are not fast enough to get out of the way of a car, he said.

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