Road Ecologist Liz Fairbank will discuss wildlife-vehicle collision solutions along U.S. 191 and MT-64 at community event in Big Sky
By Annie O’Neill EDITORIAL INTERN
Road Ecologist Liz Fairbank of the Center for Large Landscape Conservation will discuss efforts to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions along U.S. Highway 191 and Montana Highway 64 tonight at the Warren Miller Performing Arts Center from 5 to 7 p.m. The Gallatin Canyon Women’s Club is hosting the free public event, marking the 99th year the women’s club has hosted a speaker for the local community.
CLLC Senior Program Officer Abigail Breuer has worked on connectivity concepts along the corridor for 26 years and spoke to Fairbank’s extensive experience.
“I’ve been working on concepts related to this corridor since 2000,” Breuer said. “Liz has been doing this for longer than that.”
Between Four Corners and Beaver Creek, wildlife are involved in a significant amount of collisions.
“Twenty-four percent of crashes there are with wildlife,” Breuer said. “The state average is 10%, the national average is 5%. We’re continuing to grow, both in commuters and in visitors, and those forces aren’t slowing down.”
A 2023 assessment combining GPS elk collar data, public sightings, aerial surveys and habitat modeling identified 11 priority crossing sites along the corridor.A $26 million bundle of crossing structures, which includes a wildlife overpass, an enlarged stock pass, and a walkway beneath the Gallatin Canyon bridge just south of Gallatin Gateway, is now project-ready and awaiting federal funding.
“We’ve gotten through the phase of concept to where it could actually be built,” Breuer said. She noted that Montana Department of Transportation is preparing to submit it as a grant application to the federal Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program. The project would support a key part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
“We know that Yellowstone’s wildlife is an island population,” Breuer said. “Movement is key. The more difficult we make it, the harder it is on the long-term health of these populations over time.”
Breuer said she hopes attendees leave with an idea of what’s possible: this is a place that still has its full complement of native species, and it’s up to the community to keep it that way.
Fairbank’s talk will walk through how the project came together, what’s next for funding, and a look at upcoming road projects along the corridor. Breuer also hopes that residents stay engaged and weigh in through MDT’s public comment process as those plans take shape.
“The main thing is that it’s our turn to be stewards of this environment,” Breuer said. “To be here, we must. This is an opportunity to do that in a very tangible way.”
