Deer are already using a wildlife bridge over a crash-prone highway in California
The crossing will not be complete until fall, but animals have already been spotted using the structure, including three deer and a bobcat.
A wildlife bridge being built in Siskiyou County, California, to reduce collisions on a crash-prone highway. (Caltrans District 2)
A new wildlife crossing in Northern California is already doing the job it was built to do, even before construction is officially finished.
Three deer became the first animals to use the nearly completed wildlife bridge on U.S. 97 in Siskiyou County since the project began in summer 2024, according to information Caltrans District 2 shared with AccuWeather. Since the deer have been spotted in late May, other animals have been seen using the crossing, including a bobcat.
Caltrans called it "a major milestone," adding in a Facebook post that, "while the contractor is still completing final touches, it’s incredible to see wildlife already embracing the new structure."
The bridge itself is about 100 feet long and 140 feet wide, with roughly 2 miles of 8-foot-high wildlife exclusion fencing along both sides of the highway to help funnel animals toward the crossing instead of the road.
"The project area has the highest recorded wildlife-vehicle conflict rate in District 2, with over 50 deer and 16 elk fatalities recorded between 2015 and 2020," Caltrans said. "The new structure will allow safe passage for wildlife across the highway, improving driver safety and ecological resilience."
Construction on the Siskiyou County projects is expected to wrap up this fall.
A drone image showing a wildlife overpass that is nearing completion in Siskiyou County, California. (Caltrans District 2)
About a mile down the same highway, a wildlife tunnel is also under construction. The reinforced concrete culvert will expand crossing opportunities and strengthen the larger effort to reduce crashes.
An animation showing the before and after images of the wildlift tunnel build along U.S. 97 in Siskiyou County, California. (Caltrans District 2)
More crossings could follow in the years ahead in Northern California. Caltrans District 2 told AccuWeather that two local groups in the region are preparing similar projects near Susanville on U.S. 395 and on Interstate 5, though there are no approved plans yet for the crossings.
Elsewhere in California, another wildlife crossing is also nearing completion over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills, about 30 miles northwest of Los Angeles. That project is expected to become the world’s largest wildlife crossing of its kind, spanning 10 lanes of traffic once it is complete.
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