Helping Wildlife Cross the Road
Over 5,000 vehicles travel Highway 93 through Kootenay National Park on a typical summer day. To reduce animal-vehicle collisions Parks Canada plans to build fences and wildlife crossings on part of the highway using the successful program in Banff National Park as a model.
Project FAQ
Project Fact Sheet
What’s the concern?
Removing a roadkilled deer. © Parks Canada
Collisions between wildlife and vehicles kill animals, damage vehicles and, occasionally, result in human injury or death. In recent years an annual average of 50 large animals have been killed in Kootenay. This statistic does not include those dying out of view from the highway or removed by scavengers before Parks staff can record them. It also excludes hundreds of small mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles killed each year but rarely reported, and the eight to ten bighorn sheep dying annually in collisions just outside the park.
Roads are also barriers to wildlife searching for food, shelter and mates. For small animals, the pavement and cleared right-of-way can be insurmountable chasms of unsuitable or dangerous terrain. Even some larger species are deterred by vehicles, human activity, infrastructure, exposure and mortality risk. This is especially critical in Kootenay because there is seasonally important habitat on both sides of the highway, which runs through middle of the park.
Confirmed roadkills in Kootenay National Park 2001-2010 © Parks Canada
What is Parks Canada doing?
The first phase of fencing and wildlife underpasses will be in a “hot spot” for wildlife-vehicle collisions on Highway 93. © Parks Canada
The most effective way to limit wildlife-vehicle collisions while allowing animals to move across the landscape is to fence highways and provide wildlife crossing structures. Highway Fencing and Wildlife Crossings are nearing completion on the 82 km of the Trans-Canada Highway in Banff National Park. Monitoring since 1996 shows that fencing has reduced animal accidents by at least 80% and facilitated over 200,000 animal crossings through underpasses and overpasses. Similar mitigation measures are recommended for highway segments with high animal-vehicle collision rates in Kootenay.
Deer, mainly white-tailed deer, now make up over 70% of recorded roadkills in Kootenay. Special Action on the Ground funding will allow Parks Canada to fence 3 km of road and construct one or two wildlife underpasses near Dolly Varden Day Use Area on Highway 93 where there is a large deer population.
Parks Canada will continue to take other steps to limit collisions and connect the landscape. This may include establishing seasonal speed advisories or speed limits in high-risk areas, and enforcing speed limits in roadkill hot spots. As funds allow, Parks Canada is also improving culverts and bridges to help aquatic species, such as fish and amphibians cross highways too.
Wildlife underpasses similar to this one will be built on part of Highway 93 in Kootenay National Park in the near future. Fencing will ensure wildlife near the underpass use it to cross the highway. © highwaywilding.org
How can I help?
Your awareness and behaviour is key.
- Stay alert. Keep in mind that animals can appear anywhere along highways in any season. Be particularly careful when passing.
- Obey year-round, seasonal or temporary speed zones posted in areas where animals are at high risk of being hit.
- Please read the Parks Canada publication Keep the Wild in Wildlife for tips on preventing a wildlife collision.
- Report wildlife strikes, even if your vehicle is not damaged. Reporting the exact location helps park staff monitor injured animals, recover dead ones, and plan future wildlife crossings. Park Dispatch: 403-762-1473 (24/7) or Kootenay Resource Conservation Office: 250-347-9361.
Related Information
For more information, contact:
Trevor Kinley, Wildlife Crossing Project Manager
Tel: (250) 347-6634
Email: trevor.kinley@pc.gc.ca