Wildlife crossings — tunnels, bridges and culverts allowing animals to cross roads safely — reduce road mortality and improve population connectivity, providing direct welfare benefits to thousands of animals annually.
Road mortality causes immense animal welfare harm — millions of animals dying from vehicle strikes annually, typically without any welfare monitoring or intervention. Wildlife crossings represent one of the most direct infrastructure investments available for reducing this harm. Crossing effectiveness varies by design and species — tunnels that work for badgers may not work for deer, which may prefer bridges. Placement is critical, requiring surveys of existing crossing points and road mortality hotspots. Investment in wildlife crossings is justified both by welfare impact and by the economic costs of wildlife-vehicle collisions. Advocacy for wildlife crossings as standard infrastructure in road planning is a high-leverage welfare intervention.