Massive work begins on the $92 million Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing stretching across the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills this week. All lanes of the southbound 101 Freeway from Cheseboro Road to Liberty Canyon Road were being closed Monday through Friday this week from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. and closures will continue for weeks.
Since Tuesday, workers have manipulated a crane to put seven girders in place. Eventually, crews will lift into place 82 girders over the freeway that will form the skeleton of the freeway overpass — for animals. The crossing, which will be covered in soil, plants, shrubs and small trees, will look like an extension of the natural hillside terrain to attract mountain lions, which often try to cross the freeway to find mates and food. Many have died.
“With the placement of these horizontal supports, the structure is truly going to start looking like the bridge it will become,” says Beth Pratt, California regional executive director for the National Wildlife Federation and founder of The Wildlife Crossing Fund. The overnight closure of the southbound lanes will continue for three to four more weeks, said Eric Menjivar, Caltrans spokesperson. Then Caltrans will do the same with the northbound lanes, he said. The crossing is expected to be completed by early 2026.
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