Using observations of reported traffic incidents and carcasses the Road Ecology Center estimates the total annual cost of wildlife-vehicle conflict (WVC) in California to be at least $225 million, maps out stretches of highway that are likely to be hotspots, and discusses impacts to wildlife and people from WVC. Since this cost is equal to ~2% of California’s transportation budget, we suggest a strategy of “2% for wildlife and safety” to help reduce this impact to wildlife and drivers.

About this Report

This report provides an overview of wildlife-vehicle conflict (WVC) hotspots on California highways, based primarily on traffic incidents involving wildlife that were reported to the California Highway Patrol between 2/2015 and 2/2016. It also puts these conflicts in the context of carcass observations (2009-2015) reported to the California Roadkill Observation System (http://wildlifecrossing.net/california). Analytical details are available from the report author upon request .