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https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/27432/critical-issues-in-transportation-for-2024-and-beyond

Identification and Evaluation of Sites for Low-Cost Wildlife Mitigation

The Bozeman Pass transportation corridor between Bozeman and Livingston, Montana, includes Interstate 90 (I-90), frontage roads, and a railroad. Data collected indicate the highway had become a hazard to wildlife and a partial barrier to animal movements in the Bozeman Pass area, which is considered a corridor for wildlife moving north and south between the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and other habitat. Studies were begun with the objective of identifying areas of elevated roadkill and employing mitigation measures whose success could then be measured. In 2001 field data collection began on Bozeman Pass to determine the extent of animal–vehicle collisions (AVCs) and where such conflicts may best be mitigated. Subsequent funding from MDT (Montana Department of Transportation), the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Western Transportation Institute (WTI) resulted in a multi-year safety and wildlife connectivity study centered around a Montana Rail Link (MRL) bridge reconstruction site. Data on wildlife crossings and AVCs were collected before and after installation of wildlife exclusion fencing to evaluate its efficacy in reducing AVCs and funneling animal movements under the highway via existing culverts and the MRL bridge. Data collection included 1) road kill surveys; 2) track-bed monitoring at fence ends, jump-outs, and under the MRL bridge; 3) remote camera monitoring at fence ends and culverts; 4) infrared counter and remote camera monitoring at jump-outs; and 5) opportunistic snow tracking at track-bed sites and along the length of the highway in the study area. Ungulate–vehicle collisions (UVCs) have decreased significantly inside the fenced roadway since the installation of the wildlife fencing. No significant increase in UVC rates has resulted either at the fence ends or in the study area as a whole. In addition, track-bed and remote camera data indicate increased wildlife movement under the MRL bridge and through culverts. An analysis of road kill density “hotspots” before and after the fencing indicates one hotspot has been mitigated by the fence. Because wildlife mitigation measures were added to the bridge structure replacement project, the costs of this project were lower than they would have been if MDT were constructing a new wildlife crossing structure. Increased usage under the bridge and through other structures suggests that wildlife fencing leading to existing crossing structures is an effective method of reducing the risk to both motorists and wildlife while improving wildlife connectivity. Incorporating wildlife connectivity measures into scheduled road projects early in the planning stages can be a cost-effective way to reduce AVCs.

  • Summary URL:
  • Supplemental Notes:
    • Abstract used with permission from the International Conference on Ecology and Transportation, organized by the Center for Transportation and the Environment, Institute for Transportation Research and Education, North Carolina State University.
  • Corporate Authors:

    North Carolina State University, Raleigh

    Center for Transportation and the Environment
    Raleigh, NC  United States  27695-8601
  • Authors:
    • Craighead, Frank Lance
    • Craighead, April
    • Oechsli, Lauren
    • Kociolek, Angela
  • Conference:
  • Publication Date: 2012

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Digital/other
  • Features: Figures; Maps; References; Tables;
  • Pagination: pp 192-207
  • Monograph Title: Proceedings of the 2011 International Conference on Ecology and Transportation (ICOET 2011)

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01558535
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Files: TRIS
  • Created Date: Mar 31 2015 8:53AM