Wildlife Road Crossings: Infrastructure for Safe Animal Movement

Road traffic kills millions of wild animals annually in the UK — purpose-built wildlife crossing structures can dramatically reduce this mortality while improving population connectivity.

Key Facts

An estimated 50,000-100,000 badgers are killed on UK roads annually — a significant proportion of the population
Wildlife crossing structures including bridges, underpasses and culverts have been shown to reduce local mortality by 50-90%
Badger tunnels under busy roads can be retrofitted at modest cost using existing culverts
Otter ledges within bridges allow otters to travel without entering the water channel and reduce road mortality substantially
The Wildlife and Countryside Act obliges highway authorities to consider wildlife when planning road works

Welfare Considerations

Road casualties represent one of the most preventable causes of wildlife suffering and death. A badger struck by a vehicle at speed suffers acute trauma and a painful death or a lingering injury requiring euthanasia. Millions of individual animals experience this fate annually, along with the secondary suffering of surviving cubs or young separated from killed parents. Wildlife crossings — where installed and maintained — allow populations to maintain connectivity without this toll. The cost is modest relative to road construction budgets; the welfare and conservation benefit is large and permanent.

What You Can Do

Campaign for wildlife crossing structures on new road developments in your area as a planning requirement
Report badger, otter and other wildlife road casualties to highway authorities and wildlife trusts
Support your local wildlife trust in surveying high-mortality road sections and lobbying for crossing infrastructure
Contact your local authority highway department about retrofitting existing culverts as wildlife passages
Donate to The Wildlife Trusts and Badger Trust campaigns for road mortality reduction funding