{"id":12984,"date":"2026-03-07T02:26:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T09:26:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/cdot-still-plans-wildlife-crossing-for-local-hot-spot-along-u-s-160\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T21:34:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T03:34:55","slug":"cdot-still-plans-wildlife-crossing-for-local-hot-spot-along-u-s-160","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/cdot-still-plans-wildlife-crossing-for-local-hot-spot-along-u-s-160\/","title":{"rendered":"CDOT still plans wildlife crossing for local hot spot along U.S. 160"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"In
In 2022, the U.S. 160 wildlife overpass and underpass project between Bayfield and Pagosa Springs was completed on Southern Ute Tribal land. The project involved several safety and mitigation strategies, including wildlife crossings, fencing and escape ramps. (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

Last September, a man was cited for littering after sheriff deputies said he used a tractor to move a dead deer from Road P to a ditch along Road 20 near Cortez.<\/p>\n

According to the incident report, the man said he was simply clearing the road to prevent car wrecks.<\/p>\n

The incident reflects a reality many Montezuma County residents face: a risk on local roads of colliding with wildlife \u2013 dead or alive. Between Dolores and Telluride along the scenic San Juans, the area is open range for cows that often graze and roam near roadsides and shoulders.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn just one winter, I remember an entire herd of deer \u2013 man, it was a lot \u2013 and they decimated the herd, and it\u2019s a problem everywhere,\u201d said Sheriff Steve Nowlin, citing constant calls for animal\u2011vehicle collisions.<\/p>\n

The worst stretch is U.S. Highway 160 between Cortez and Mancos. Wildlife officials say the corridor ranks among the top 5% most dangerous in the state for vehicle collisions with wildlife. From the western edge of Cortez to just past Mancos, CPW recorded 404 wildlife\u2011vehicle crashes from the years 2020 to 2025.<\/p>\n

Similarly, state agencies recorded 802 mule deer and elk carcasses on U.S. 160 from 2020 to 2024. The roadkill data for that period also included black bears, mountain lion and bighorn sheep. Other species in the data included raccoon, coyote, fox, owl, rabbit, bobcat, turkey, skunk and badger.<\/p>\n

Agencies like the Colorado Department of Transportation and Colorado Parks and Wildlife have spent years studying how collisions occur and working with partners to identify problem areas.<\/p>\n

\"Wildlife
Wildlife fencing, about 8-feet high, lines a highway corridor near Ridgway. (Courtesy of Colorado Department of Transportation)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Those efforts involve a system of mitigation tactics and structures, including wildlife fencing, underpasses and overpasses, but the state still lacks a dedicated funding stream for the cost\u2011heavy projects.<\/p>\n

CDOT is in the design and planning phase for constructing a large\u2011game underpass along U.S. 160\u2019s Cortez\u2013Mesa Verde corridor, where many mule deer, elk or black bears migrate. Fences will also be built in existing drainage culverts to ensure safe passage of smaller mammals like rabbits, foxes and raccoons.<\/p>\n

The project is still years away \u2013 CDOT\u2019s Region 5 communications manager Lisa Schwantes said it expects to break ground in the early 2030s.<\/p>\n

The project demonstrates how mitigation strategies are multifaceted. Sometimes they involve installing crossings, fencing, deer guards or escape ramps designed to keep animals off the roads. But to be effective, they require animals to use those features.<\/p>\n

\"A
A wildlife escape ramp along Colorado Highway 9 north of Silverthorne. The ramps allow animals trapped along highway fencing to leap safely back into grazing land. (Photo\/CDOT)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

State agencies could construct one massive fence around all highways, but Colorado Parks and Wildlife\u2019s senior resources manager Brian Magee said the theory stops short, posing serious ecological risks.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe consequence of that would be that our deer and elk no longer can move across the landscape, and we would end up impacting the populations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Magee said they learned elk aren\u2019t as fond of underpasses. Elk do not naturally travel underground and are likely wary of enclosed spaces or entering tunnel\u2011like structures.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere in the natural world is an elk going to go underground?\u201d Magee said. \u201cMule deer don\u2019t seem to mind using the underpasses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Magee said the location, as well as the seasons, play major roles \u2013 this region is particularly vulnerable migration hub.<\/p>\n

Southwest Colorado sees large herds of migrating mule deer and elk each year. In the fall, animals traverse from high\u2011elevation mountains to lower winter ranges. In the spring, they return to the mountains for summer.<\/p>\n

Beyond the biological considerations, wildlife crossings are no easy engineering feat and usually present the challenge of raising funds. Cash was put up by the Southern Ute Tribe, CDOT and CPW for the wildlife overpass and underpass along U.S. 160 between Bayfield and Pagosa Springs.<\/p>\n

\"Deer
Deer guards were recently installed for the U.S. 160 Fort Garland Project. (Photo\/CDOT)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

According to CDOT, more than 60% of all crashes in the area were attributed to wildlife\u2011vehicle collisions. CDOT said the project\u2019s safety features reduced those collisions by about 80%. The most recent project was the I\u201170 Greenland overpass built last year, extending across six lanes between Denver and Colorado Springs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve done the work to know where these things go. We\u2019ve done the study to know what works if they\u2019re put in the right place,\u201d Magee said. \u201cAnd now, we\u2019re really just trying to find the resources to implement those projects and that takes time and money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Projects are typically funded through a mix of federal grants and partnerships.<\/p>\n

John Livingston, public information officer for Colorado Parks and Wildlife, said to stay safe drivers should stay aware during dawn and dusk, when wildlife activity peaks.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou got to be looking at the shoulders and on all the area around the roads too,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Livingston said if you see one animal, assume more are nearby.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot being distracted and playing on your phone or eating your breakfast burrito, driving with your knees,\u201d Magee said. \u201cThose are always terrible ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

awatson@the\u2011journal.com<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Project aims to reduce collisions with deer, elk, small mammals<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12985,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[28,29,994],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-12984","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-headlines","tag-newsletter","tag-trueanthem"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12984","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12984"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12984\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18755,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12984\/revisions\/18755"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12984"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12984"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12984"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=12984"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}