California, Brightline West agree to build overcrossings for wildlife

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and Brightline West have entered into an agreement to design and construct three wildlife crossings over Interstate 15 and the future Brightline West high-speed rail system that will connect Las Vegas and Southern California.

These dedicated overcrossings will provide a sustainable and safe path for wildlife — especially for bighorn sheep — over the existing northbound and southbound highway lanes and the future high-speed rail system to be built within the median, California and Brightline officials said in a joint press release.

CDFW has identified three priority locations for the wildlife overcrossings, all in San Bernardino County. They will be built near Zzyzx Road, near Mountain Pass and Rasor Road, and span the entire width of I-15, including the Brightline West rail line.

In addition to the overcrossings, the Brightline West project will maintain or improve more than 600 culverts and large-scale crossings under I-15 that exist today. The project also will restore and install desert tortoise fencing and directional wildlife exclusionary fencing.

Over the past year, Brightline, Caltrans and CDFW together have developed a plan to fund, design, construct and maintain the wildlife overcrossings. The parties intend to fund the overcrossings with a mix of their own capital resources while also seeking federal dollars.

Brightline West is developing a 218-mile high-speed rail line designed to connect Las Vegas and Southern California with a fully electric, emission-free system. Stations are planned for Rancho Cucamonga, Hesperia, Apple Valley and Las Vegas. The rail service is projected to eliminate 3 million cars from the road and reduce annual carbon emissions by more than 400,000 tons, according to Brightline.