New wildlife overpass above highway is B.C.'s widest outside national parks | Daily Hive

New wildlife overpass above Highway 93/95 near Radium Hot Springs. (Glencore Canada)

A brand-new wildlife overpass spanning Highway 93/95 — also known as Kootenay Highway — near Radium Hot Springs in the British Columbia interior is helping animals safely cross the busy roadway while reducing the risk of potentially serious vehicle collisions.

The provincial government recently officially commemorated the completion of the structure, which was built primarily to protect the area’s bighorn sheep herd — one of the region’s last strong herds.

Collisions involving bighorn sheep have become a growing concern along the highway, which serves as an important transportation route through the East Kootenay region.

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Wildlife began using the crossing before construction was fully finished, according to the provincial government.

“Highway 93/95 is an important route for people and communities in the area,” said Mike Farnworth, B.C. Minister of Transportation and Transit in a statement.

“By reducing collisions between vehicles and Radium’s bighorn sheep herd and other wildlife, we’re making a busy transportation corridor safer and enabling the long-term health of travellers and the area’s four-legged inhabitants.”

bc wildlife overpass highway 93/95 radium hot springs

New wildlife overpass above Highway 93/95 near Radium Hot Springs. (Government of B.C.)

This is the widest wildlife crossing in B.C. located outside a national park.

The overpass structure consists of a 112-ft-wide (34 metres) steel-and-concrete arch, covered with a naturalized surface — encouraging animals to use this route to travel above the highway instead of entering the vehicle traffic lanes.

Moreover, about six km of wildlife fencing and gates have also been installed to prevent animals from reaching the highway and guide them toward the safe elevated fully-grade separated crossing.

The new overpass connects national park lands east of the highway with the Columbia Wetlands to the west, restoring a safer route through an important wildlife movement corridor. Beyond bighorn sheep, the structure could also be used by badgers, black bears, cougars, deer, and elk.

New wildlife overpass above Highway 93/95 near Radium Hot Springs. (Google Maps)

New wildlife overpass above Highway 93/95 near Radium Hot Springs. (Glencore Canada)

According to the provincial government, based on other installations elsewhere, such wildlife crossings above busy roads with exclusion fencing can reduce animal-vehicle collisions by over 80 per cent.

This Radium crossing is part of the provincial government’s broader use of fencing and dedicated structures to reduce wildlife collisions. More than 600 kilometres of wildlife exclusion fencing have been installed across B.C., which the provincial government notes is more than any other transportation agency in North America.

Moreover, B.C. also has more wildlife overpasses than any other province in Canada.

The project was led by the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit in partnership with the B.C. Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, Parks Canada, the Shuswap Band, the Ktunaxa Nation Council, the Village of Radium Hot Springs, ICBC, and the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation. Elk Valley Resources contributed $2.5 million toward the project.

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