May 9, 2023 2:03 PM
FHWA Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program (WCPP)
The Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program (WCPP) is a competitive grant program with the goal of reducing Wildlife Vehicle Collisions (WVCs) while improving habitat connectivity for terrestrial and aquatic species.
In creating the WCPP, Congress found that there are more than 1,000,000 WVCs annually which present a danger to human safety and wildlife survival, cost over $8 billion, and result in approximately tens of thousands of serious injuries and hundreds of fatalities on U.S. roadways
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), enacted as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (Pub. L. 117-58, November 15, 2021) authorized $350 million total in Federal-aid contract authority funding for Federal Fiscal Years (FY) 2022 through 2026 to be awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT or the Department), through the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), for the WCPP. The WCPP is authorized under Section 11123(b) of BIL and codified at 23 U.S.C. 171.