As we know, the new 85 MPH toll road is now open, and while it is largely free of traffic, there are other obstacles to watch out for.
“That is a known pig route,” said Caldwell County Precinct 1 Constable Victor “Smitty” Terrell, who heard one of the hog-vs.-vehicle crashes on his police radio Wednesday night.
Like Texas 130 has the highest speed limit, Texas claims the largest feral hog population in the U.S. — 2.6 million.
It is so problematic that the state agriculture department runs a feral hog abatement program, including a contest called the “Hog Out Challenge,” in which counties compete to take the most swine by killing them, or trapping, snaring or capturing them “for purposes of immediate slaughter,” the rules say.
Caldwell County is competing in the challenge.
It’s unclear if road kill counts. Lockhart police Capt. John Roescher spotted at least three dead hogs on the side of Texas 130 at U.S. 183 on Thursday morning.
I suppose that’s one way to deal with the feral hog problem. It’s probably cheaper and less dangerous to shoot them from a helicopter than take them out with the family car, however. If you drive on SH 130 now, you will see road signs warning you of this hazard.
The SH 130 Concession Co. announced the sign plan Tuesday morning on its Facebook page. The signs will go up as soon as they can be made, said spokesman Chris Lippincott.
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Lippincott said the company decided, based on early driving experiences, that the signs were needed.
While everyone knows to take caution behind the wheel, Lippincott said, “there’s nothing wrong with reminding them from time to time.”
Here’s the Facebook post. Wisecracks aside, I would not want to meet up with a 400 pound hog at 85 MPH. TM Daily Post has video of hogs crossing SH 130 at night. It’s just a matter of time before this causes a fatality. I hope it’s not too frequent an occurrence.
Very few feral hogs get as big as 400 pounds. The majority are in the 100-250 pound range, at least where I’ve seen them. Having said that, I wouldn’t want to hit a 100 pound hog at high speed anymore than I would want to hit a 400 pound one.