In southeastern Idaho, a twenty-mile stretch of Highway 30 is the epicenter of life and death for one of Idaho’s largest mule deer herds. Thousands of deer must migrate through this area every year on the way to winter habitat they need to survive and, in the process, more than 100 are struck and killed annually. Of those, 70 percent are killed within just a four-mile section at Rocky Point.

To create safer conditions for people and ensure safe migration for the Bear Lake Plateau mule deer herd, the Idaho Transportation Department recently secured $20.8 million in federal grant funding to build three wildlife underpasses at Rocky Point.

When building wildlife crossing structures, it’s essential that land on both sides of the crossing project remain open to wildlife into the future. In 2019, GYC donated $100,000 and collaborated with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game to help purchase conservation easements at Rocky Point. Securing these easements six years ago helped pave the way for this recent win.

Rocky Point is an area outside Montpelier, Idaho on the southeastern edge of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Every year, thousands of mule deer migrate through this area. This herd of 20,000 animals summer in Idaho’s Caribou Mountains and Wyoming’s Star Valley, and winter in locations northeast of Bear Lake. Every year, approximately one-third of the herd must cross U.S. Highway 30 at Rocky Point to get to their winter grounds. This stretch of Highway 30 is a well-known hotspot for wildlife-vehicle collisions. 

This section of road demonstrates a real threat to the mule deer herd and the safety of drivers. Roads create barriers to seasonal migrations and as traffic volume increases along Highway 30, we risk the highway becoming a permanent barrier to mule deer reaching the habitat they need. Ensuring the Bear Lake Plateau mule deer herd can continue to migrate along historical pathways is critical to the long-term success of the herd and the economies of local communities that rely on hunting and the wildlife-watching industry that exists because of these deer.  

The federal grant is the final piece of the puzzle for the Rocky Point project, fully funding three underpasses and six miles of fencing to be installed along U.S. Highway 30. When installed, wildlife crossing infrastructure has been shown to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions by up to 90 percent.

The funding was awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration through the Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program, a new grant program in its second round of awards that was created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In the most recent cycle, the program awarded money to 16 projects in 16 states, totaling more than $125 million to keep people and wildlife safe across the United States.

The Rocky Point project demonstrates a successful collaboration among Idaho Fish and Game, Idaho Transportation Department, private landowners, and the communities of southeast Idaho. The Rocky Point project will build on Idaho’s wildlife legacy and the state’s first wildlife crossing structure, Cervidae Peak Wildlife Overpass, completed in 2023 (Watch 1000 deer cross the Cervidae overpass!). As one of the fastest growing states in the nation – and the state with the most documented migration corridors in the West – Idaho has tremendous opportunity to conserve big game migration pathways as development continues to grow.

Construction at Rocky Point is anticipated to begin in 2026. We are proud to be part of this collaborative project and cannot wait to see it come to fruition for the safety of people and wildlife.

—Kathy Rinaldi, Deputy Director of Conservation (Driggs, Idaho)