Several highways in the Jackson Hole area may be widened from 2-lane roads to 5-lane roads. These highway widening projects seek to improve motorist safety and transportation efficiency, but they are also likely to be associated with a further increase in traffic volume and vehicle speeds. Wider roads, higher traffic volume, and higher vehicle speeds lead to an increased impact on wildlife, including their habitat and movements across the landscape. While it has been found that widening lanes and shoulders on rural highways leads to safer roads, it also increases wildlife-vehicle collisions. This project will evaluate 3 highway segments in the Jackson Hole area to develop potential sites where recommendations for wildlife mitigation measures may prove to be the most useful, It will also conduct an economic cost-benefit analysis for wildlife-vehicle collisions and potential mitigation measures at each site.

This project is jointly funded by the USDOT University Transportation Center (UTC) program and the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance. This project represents the UTC-sponsored component.