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It is a real crossbreed of animals.
A new video shows a stream of deer, porcupines, bears and bobcats walking on an interstate highway in Utah – using the state’s first wildlife bridge.
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources shared the footage last week, showing the Parleys Canyon Wildlife Overpass near Salt Lake City is being used as intended.
“It works!” the agency wrote on Facebook.
The state’s Department of Transportation took the project as a way to reduce vehicle collisions with creatures on Interstate 80, local outlets reported.
The 350-foot-long animal-only bridge was completed in 2018. In the previous two years, there have been at least 106 vehicle crashes with wildlife, killing around 64 animals.
Complete data was not immediately available for the years since the completion of the viaduct. However, UDOT spokesman John Gleason told the Salt Lake Tribune last year that the initial results were “encouraging.”
“From what we can tell, the number of accidents has dropped significantly,” he said. “At least initially, it seems that the investment in security is paying off. And we expected it to take several years for animals to get used to using it, so it’s great.
To make the bridge more attractive to wildlife and help it blend in with the surroundings, crews placed dirt, boulders, and boulders over the crossing.
“We want the bridge to feel as much as possible in the environment,” said Gleason. “It’s a victory for both the wildlife and the people who drive on the road.”
Six miles of fencing has also been installed to ensure wildlife will use the overpass, instead of trying to cross the highway.
“As you can see, the second year of this overpass was successful in helping wildlife migrate safely on the busy Interstate 80 and helping motorists be much safer as well,” wildlife resources.
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