NJ’s deer problem just hit my friend on I-195 — and it’s getting worse

A friend of mine was driving west on I-195 last week — heading from the Shore back toward Trenton, cruising comfortably, maybe a touch over the speed limit. Who among us has not done that on a wide open stretch of 195 on a weekday morning?

He was thinking about the workday ahead, listening to the radio, and spotted a single deer standing in the median. A nice moment actually. A little burst of nature in the middle of a highway commute. A second of unexpected calm.

And then the deer ran directly in front of his car.

The front end of the vehicle was destroyed. Drivable, but destroyed. My friend is fine — shaken up, but fine. The deer was not. And the whole thing was over in less than a second.

He was the lucky one. These collisions do not always end this way for the driver.

New Jersey's deer problem is not subtle

New Jersey has one of the highest deer-vehicle collision rates in the country. The state's combination of dense suburban development, fragmented woodlands and an exploding deer population has created a situation where the animals have essentially run out of viable habitat — and are increasingly showing up everywhere else instead.

The highway median. Your vegetable garden. Your landscaping. Judi Franco's garden, where she has resorted to planting artificial flowers specifically to throw the deer off. That is not a joke. That is a real adaptation a real person made to outwit a deer in suburban New Jersey in 2026.

I gave up my vegetable garden last year for similar reasons. I spent the time planting, weeding, feeding and carefully tending my tomatoes — and one morning walked out to find a deer had taken a single bite out of every single one and apparently decided it did not like them. Not hungry enough to finish. Just enough to ruin everything.

I understand every living thing needs to eat. But when the deer population grows so large that the animals are eating prickly holly bushes — plants that exist specifically because nothing is supposed to want them — that is a sign that something is genuinely out of balance.

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Sandy Hook is now taking this seriously

The National Park Service is in the early stages of developing a management plan for white-tailed deer in the Sandy Hook Unit of Gateway National Recreation Area. The NPS held a public open house at the Sandy Hook Chapel on April 23rd and is now accepting written comments through May 23, 2026.

This is not a small thing. Sandy Hook is a barrier peninsula — essentially an island accessed by one road. Deer have been present at Sandy Hook for years, munching on the vast tree and shrub buffet the place offers. But the population has grown to the point where the NPS feels a formal management plan is necessary. That says everything about where things stand.

So what is the answer

This is where the conversation gets complicated and reasonable people disagree.

Birth control for deer — contraceptive programs exist and have been used in suburban communities with some success, but they are expensive, require ongoing management and work slowly over many years. Not a quick fix.

Increased hunting — New Jersey already has a deer hunting season and hunting is one of the most effective population management tools available. Expanding access, lengthening seasons or creating new management zones in areas where development has pushed deer into suburban corridors would help. But hunting is a political conversation in this state and not everyone is comfortable with it.

Culling programs — the option the NPS appears to be considering at Sandy Hook — involve sharpshooting or other direct removal methods. Controversial but effective. Several New Jersey municipalities and state parks have used controlled culls to reduce populations in areas where hunting is not practical.

Venison donation — one of the most practical and least discussed options. Deer removed through any management program can be processed and donated to food banks and shelters. New Jersey already has programs that do this. Expanding them makes both practical and humanitarian sense.

There is no single answer that satisfies everyone. But the status quo — deer populations that have outgrown their habitat, destroying gardens, eating holly bushes and running into cars on I-195 — is not working for the deer or for the people of New Jersey.

My friend on I-195 got lucky. Not everyone does.

If you want to weigh in on the Sandy Hook management plan, written comments are being accepted through May 23rd at the Gateway National Recreation Area project website or by email at Gateway_feedback@nps.gov.