Agoura Hills wildlife crossing project progress takes big step as excavation begins

AGOURA HILLS, Calif. (KABC) -- Progress is being made in the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing project near Agoura Hills as excavation has already begun.

Caltrans shared new video of the project's construction in a tweet on Thursday that shows support columns already in place on the median along Highway 101.

Caltrans said crews have already removed plastic sheets that were protecting slopes from the recent rainfall.

The crossing will span over 10 lanes of the 101 Freeway in Liberty Canyon when completed in 2025, and aims to provide a connection between the small population of mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains and the larger and genetically diverse populations to the north.

Decades of road construction and development have been deadly for animals trying to cross, and have created islands of habitat that have genetically isolated wildlife from bobcats to birds and lizards.

Wildlife advocates hope the crossing can save the threatened local population of mountain lions from extinction. They've also characterized the future structure as "a global model for urban wildlife conservation" that will "benefit the wildlife and ecology of the area for generations to come."

The $85 million project will be the largest crossing of its kind in the world, stretching 210 feet over the freeway.

City News Service, Inc. contributed to this report.