Deer Cross California's First Wildlife Bridge Before It Opens

Three mule deer just made history by crossing California's first wildlife bridge over a major highway, and they did it before construction crews even finished the job.

A camera trap captured the trio trotting across the $20 million structure over Route 97 in Siskiyou County within days of completion. Workers were still adding final touches to the fencing when the deer decided to test it out themselves.

"While the contractor is still completing final touches, it's incredible to see wildlife already embracing the new structure, even with workers still in the area," California's Department of Transportation posted on Facebook. A bobcat and other animals have also started using the crossing.

The bridge tackles a serious problem that most drivers don't realize exists. California drivers kill nearly 50,000 mule deer every year, wiping out roughly 10% of the state's entire deer population. Nearly 100 mountain lions die in car crashes annually, along with thousands of elk and other species.

At this specific crossing site alone, 50 deer and 16 elk died between 2015 and 2020. Those deaths are about to become history.

Fraser Shilling directs the Road Ecology Center at UC Davis and calls the project California's "first over-crossing laboratory." His team studies how to make these crossings work better for future projects.

The bridge itself works together with special fencing that guides animals toward the safe crossing instead of onto the road. Without that fencing, Shilling explains, the bridge alone wouldn't stop wildlife deaths.

The Ripple Effect

This single bridge opens the door for wildlife crossings across California. The massive Wallis Annenberg crossing will span all 10 lanes of Highway 101 in Southern California when it opens later this year, becoming the world's largest wildlife bridge.

Caltrans funded this trailblazing project with its own money, making a bold statement that driver safety and wildlife protection both matter. A 2024 Road Ecology Center report called vehicle crashes with wildlife "a damaging and preventable natural disaster" that harms both animals and people.

The early success gives conservationists hope that California can reverse decades of wildlife deaths on its highways while making roads safer for everyone.

Those three brave deer just proved the concept works, and thousands of their relatives will follow in their hoofprints for generations to come.