I-90 wildlife overcrossing opens near Snoqualimie Pass

Animals are now walking over I-90 using a completed wildlife crossing spanning the busy interstate. Already six undercrossings are complete, allowing wildlife to travel north to south in the Cascades.

The crossing is east of Snoqualimie Pass. On Monday, it was officially unveiled.

Conservation Northwest got involved in the project in 2004, after the conservation organization had finished purchasing about 40,000 acres south and north of I-90. That conservation effort morphed into the animal crossing project. Conservation Northwest administers the I-90 Wildlife Bridges Coalition, which includes the Forest Service, WSDOT, businesses and other partners.

“We’re thrilled to see this first wildlife overcrossing taking shape, and six large undercrossings now complete and in use by animals from elk and mule deer to pikas and salamanders,” said Chase Gunnell, Conservation Northwest spokesperson. “This project isn’t just keeping both people and animals safe, it’s a model for how infrastructure and wildlife can coexist in the 21st century.”