WASHINGTON, DC— Today, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Rick Larsen (D-WA) issued the following statement after the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced $109.6 million in grant funding for 20 wildlife crossing projects across the country.
“America’s drivers and wildlife will soon be safer thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s nearly $110 million investment in wildlife crossing infrastructure,” Ranking Member Larsen said. “In my state of Washington, $8.5 million will help the Stillaguamish Tribe design and construct an overpass on rural State Route 20 that will protect drivers and animals such as elk. Across the country, this funding will cut down on the hundreds of thousands of wildlife vehicle collisions that threaten the safety of drivers and animals alike—from grizzly bears in Montana and bighorn sheep in Nebraska to endangered ocelots in Texas and moose in Vermont. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law continues to create cleaner, greener, safer, and more accessible transportation across the country.”
The FHWA’s Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program was created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law with the goal of reducing wildlife vehicle collisions while improving habitat connectivity for terrestrial and aquatic species.
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