A $37 million wildlife crossing project considered essential to protect drivers and two mule deer herds devastated by a harsh winter two years ago is on track to start construction next year, Wyoming wildlife and transportation officials report.
The Kemmerer Wildlife Crossing project on U.S. Highway 189 in southwest Wyoming will add five underpasses, one overpass and fencing improvements along a 30-mile stretch of highway between Evanston and Kemmerer.
The project is expected to benefit prized Wyoming Range mule deer, the Uinta mule deer herd and the Carter Lease pronghorn herd, Wyoming Game and Fish officials said.
Stephanie Harsha, a spokeswoman with the Wyoming Department of Transportation, said the project will be put out to bid in May with construction beginning as soon as a few months afterward.
The project, which is being funded with a $24.3 million federal Wildlife Crossing Pilot Program discretionary grant, will take about two years to build.
“Ultimately, we’re hoping to have that completed at the very latest in November 2028,” Harsha said.
The stretch of U.S. 189 has been described as a slaughterhouse for wildlife.
“It can be kind of a messy death zone,” former Game and Fish Green River wildlife coordinator Mark Zornes told Cowboy State Daily last year.
That Devastating Winter
The Wyoming Range mule deer herd, considered by hunters to be among the most prized of Wyoming’s wildlife, saw nearly two-thirds of its population wiped out during the brutal 2022-2023 winter. Herd numbers were estimated shrinking from 30,000 to about 11,000.
The herd typically spends the summer and fall in the Wyoming Range mountains, and then winter on the vast flats between the Wyoming Range and Wind River mountains. The crossing is being built along a stretch of highway that is part of the deer’s migration pattern and has been the scene of several car and deer collisions.
Along U.S. 189, state Game and Fish officials say an average of 80 deer-vehicle collisions are reported there annually, although this number is likely underreported.
The stretch of highway is also slated for increased development and traffic with a planned nuclear power facility being built nearby. State officials anticipate the crossing could eliminate between 80% and 90% of wildlife-vehicle collisions.
A portion of the recently completed Dry Piney Connectivity Project, which consists of 33.4 miles of 8-foot-tall deer fence and nine underpasses. (Courtesy Wyoming Department of Transportation) 
A portion of the recently completed Dry Piney Connectivity Project, which consists of 33.4 miles of 8-foot-tall deer fence and nine underpasses. (Courtesy Wyoming Department of Transportation) 
(Courtesy Wyoming Department of Transportation)
Wildlife Use Them
Grant Foster, a Wyoming Game and Fish biologist, said wildlife quickly learn to use the crossings as soon as they’re completed.
“In the places they get established, they almost eliminate (mule deer) highway mortalities,” Foster said. “If you just have a big enough view of the other side, then they’ll utilize it pretty quick. Because of the high fencing (along the highway), they’ll be searching for a way to cross.
“If they feel comfortable with the space underneath, then they'll go ahead and go through it.”
While the Federal Highway Administration is paying more than 20% of the project, $4.2 million is coming from WYDOT. The Wyoming Transportation Commission, Game and Fish Commission, Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource Trust and other nonprofits and private partners contributed $8.8 million.
The Wyldlife Fund helped spearhead private fundraising. The group’s president, Chris McBarnes, called the project a “transformative project in southwest Wyoming in regards to wildlife and human safety.”
“The project also speaks to how Wyoming is leading the way in wildlife crossings, really across the nation,” McBarnes added.
Existing wildlife crossing improvements along U.S. 189 include the Trapper’s Point crossing and the recently completed Dry Piney Connectivity Project, which consists of 33.4 miles of 8-foot-tall deer fence and nine underpasses, Harsha said..
McBarnes said his group has helped raise nearly $2.7 million toward another wildlife crossing between Dubois and Crowheart along U.S. Highway 26. The state, which is pitching in matching funds, is seeking an $18 million federal grant for the bulk of the cost.
Justin George can be reached at justin@cowboystatedaily.com.
