Throughout the last year, Montana has been making major headway toward safer highways for all. Their 2024 initiative to fundraise for wildlife crossings set off a chain reaction of renewed support for this critical infrastructure.
Starting with a bill to create a wildlife license plate that would raise money, Montana's wildlife crossings program has reached the milestone of eligibility for state funds. These new bills, House Bill 855 and House Bill 932, allocate money toward the construction of life-saving bridges over roads that wildlife frequently cross.
"Montana currently has the second-highest per capita rate of wildlife-vehicle collisions in the United States. The average driver faces a 1 in 53 chance of hitting an animal each year and 13 percent of total reported collisions in the state related to wildlife," Mountain Journal reported.
Preventing these accidents will not only save money but also prevent injuries and loss of life for both humans and animals. It's a major priority for road safety in the state.
"In Montana, we have a lot of roads cutting through intact wildlife habitats and migration routes," said Kylie Paul, an ecologist at the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, per Mountain Journal. "Many are high-speed, low-light and, to some level, still low-traffic highways which help animals still feel safe to move across them."
Wildlife migration patterns crisscross the U.S. highway system at countless points, interrupting migration routes. Loss of habitat and migration routes significantly threaten certain "keystone species," or species whose disappearance affects the entire ecosystem. This is why wildlife bridges are important. They are designed to encourage wildlife to cross the road over a grassy bridge rather than wander into traffic.
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In Canada's Banff National Park, a wildlife crossing has led to an 80% decrease in collisions with animals in the area.
The funds to build these structures will come from the aforementioned license plate, but House Bill 932 also "builds on that foundation by allocating 20 percent of Montana's marijuana tax revenue to a Habitat Legacy Account. Of that, 5 percent — approximately $500,000 annually — is earmarked specifically for wildlife crossings," reported Mountain Journal.
Montana's success sets a new standard for other states with the same problems to follow in its footsteps.
"It's the first continuous funding source for wildlife crossings in the nation," Paul said, per Mountain Journal. " It's honestly shocking."
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