Crews install first girder for wildlife crossing over 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills

AGOURA HILLS, Calif. (KABC) -- This week, Caltrans crews began an important phase in construction for the wildlife crossing that's being erected over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills.

New video from AIR7 HD shows crews have installed the first girder, or large concrete beam, across the roadway.

The construction calls for overnight closures of the freeway that will stretch from Cheseboro to Liberty Canyon roads on weekdays, from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. It will last for the next several weeks.

The closures are necessary for crews to lift and install large concrete beams, or girders, over the freeway. Each of the girders weighs between 126 and 140 tons.

Once work is done on the southbound side, the closures will shift to the northbound side.

Officials hope the bridge will prevent tragedies by providing mountain lions in the area with a safe way to cross the freeway.

Construction on the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing began in 2022, and it is expected to be completed by late 2025 or early 2026.

The fully landscaped crossing will span over all 10 lanes of the freeway. It is designed 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. The crossing will be the largest of its type in the nation, officials said.

More information about the project is available online at 101wildlifecrossing.org.

City News Service contributed to this report.