The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District is planning to construct an undercrossing for wildlife and a separate overcrossing bridge for hikers, horse riders and bicyclists to help animals and people cross Highway 17 near Lexington Reservoir in Los Gatos, Calif., shown here on Thursday, June 13, 2024. Most people know Highway 17 as a winding, mountainous road that thousands of motorists use every weekend to travel from Silicon Valley to beaches in Santa Cruz.
Last month, the board of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, a government agency based in Los Altos, voted to select a preferred location for the projects. The wildlife undercrossing will be located a quarter mile north of the dam at Lexington Reservoir, and the pedestrian overcrossing will be another quarter mile farther north.
“Every day, people need to be able to move — to get food, to meet with other people, to find a comfortable place to be. Animals need that too,” said Neal Sharma, senior manager of the California Wildlife Program for the Wildlife Conservation Network, an environmental group in San Francisco. “When there are multiple lanes of highways with a lot of traffic, they aren’t able to. Highways can separate entire populations of species.
“We’re really encouraged by the large number and large variety of animals using it,” said Bryan Largay, conservation manager for the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County. “There have been herds of deer walking under it, a doe and fawns enjoying shade in it, bobcats, foxes and mountain lions. These are all animals that aren’t on the roadway, aren’t causing traffic accidents and are able to get on with their lives in a way that makes our community members feel really happy.
A rendering shows the proposed wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills. The bridge over the freeway would allow mountain lions and other animals to go from one side of the freeway to the other and would promote genetic diversity in local species.