How the transportation bill can protect communities, wildlife and taxpayers

Opinion>Congress Blog>Congress Blog - Energy & Environment The views expressed by contributors are their own and not the view of The Hill How the transportation bill can protect communities, wildlife and taxpayers Comments: by Forbes Tompkins, Ian Nakayama and Jason Smith, opinion contributors - 08/07/26 12:30 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Forbes Tompkins, Ian Nakayama and Jason Smith, opinion contributors - 08/07/26 12:30 PM ET Comments: Link copied

Title: Wildlife Bridge Image ID: 18345631675571 Article: In this photo taken Oct. 4, 2018, a worker walks past a gap where tall panels are being erected on a wildlife bridge under construction over Interstate 90 on Snoqualmie Pass, Wash. The stretch of highway crossing the Cascade Mountains cuts through old growth forest and wetlands, creating a dangerous border for wildlife everything from an elk down to a small salamander. The new crossing gives animals in these mountains a safer option for crossing the road: They'll be able to go above it. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

In this photo taken Oct. 4, 2018, a worker walks past a gap where tall panels are being erected on a wildlife bridge under construction over Interstate 90 on Snoqualmie Pass, Wash. The stretch of highway crossing the Cascade Mountains cuts through old growth forest and wetlands, creating a dangerous border for wildlife everything from an elk down to a small salamander. The new crossing gives animals in these mountains a safer option for crossing the road: They’ll be able to go above it. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

America’s transportation infrastructure is the backbone of the nation’s economy, keeping commuters safe, supply chains moving and essential services accessible. The current surface transportation law, enacted five years ago, plays a critical role in maintaining those functions but is set to expire in September.

The Senate is working on legislation that would extend current transportation programs through early December and provide lawmakers with additional time to work on a surface transportation reauthorization bill. In May, the House took a significant step forward when the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed the BUILD America 250 Act with a strong bipartisan vote of 62-2.

The bill’s return on investment will depend in part on whether lawmakers preserve and strengthen several less well-known but highly effective programs: the Wildlife Crossings Program, the Protect program and the National Culvert Removal, Replacement, and Restoration Grant program.

As Congress advances toward a final reauthorization bill, lawmakers across the political spectrum should continue to enhance these programs to ensure that taxpayer dollars are invested in ways that reduce crashes, keep roads open during disasters, and help local economies thrive.

Animal-vehicle collisions are a persistent national public safety problem, resulting in hundreds of human fatalities, more than 26,000 injuries and over $8 billion in annual costs — more than $12 billion when adjusted for inflation. They can disproportionately affect rural communities, where fish, wildlife and livestock are central to the landscape, culture, and traditions.

Wildlife crossings, such as overpasses and underpasses, paired with fencing, are proven solutions that can reduce collisions by up to 97 percent. Fewer collisions mean improved safety for the traveling public, lower medical costs and fewer traffic disruptions. Wildlife crossings can also support livestock activity, such as grazing, while facilitating species movement and migration, enabling access to food, water, and habitat.

The value of wildlife crossings is reflected in robust demand from states, Tribes and local governments for Wildlife Crossings Program funding. Although authorized at $350 million over five years, applicants requested nearly $550 million in the first round alone. More than a dozen states have passed legislation to generate matching funds and compete for federal grants.

Encouragingly, the committee-passed bill would increase funding for wildlife crossings to $400 million over five years, make the program permanent and eliminate the cost-share match requirement for Tribes to help ensure all eligible projects receive fair consideration.

This is meaningful progress, but funding still falls short of growing demand. Congress should increase Wildlife Crossings Program funding to between $100 million and $200 million annually to provide sufficient resources to scale up wildlife crossing projects and planning.

Extreme weather events damage transportation infrastructure and contribute to nearly 6,500 fatal crashes and more than 450,000 injuries each year. The Protect Program helps Americans nationwide proactively reduce disaster risk by strengthening the surface transportation network.

In West Virginia, for example, the program awarded $3 million to reduce flood risk along the main evacuation route for the city of Richwood. In Minnesota, Protect formula funding helped create the state Department of Transportation’s resilience improvement plan, which outlines natural hazard vulnerabilities and response options so planners can systematically reduce future risk from natural hazards.

It’s promising that the BUILD America 250 Act expands funding for the competitive grant portion of the Protect Program, which is essential for driving novel solutions that enhance disaster resilience.

However, the bill would eliminate the formula component that currently provides every state with baseline resilience funding. This means states could no longer count on predictable annual funding at a time when communities face increasingly frequent and costly disasters.

The $7.3 billion in cumulative formula funding from the current surface transportation law gives states stable, flexible resources to direct where needed most. Congress should maintain the balance of Protect formula funding and competitive grants to ensure sustained nonfederal investment in resilient transportation infrastructure.

Roughly 68 million culverts, which allow water and animals to pass under roads across the country, were built using 1950s-era designs. When these outdated structures fail under today’s more intense storms, local economies bear the brunt of washed-out roads and inundated homes, businesses and agricultural lands.

Replacing these structures proactively — before the next storm — is far less costly than emergency repairs. Undersized culverts affect people, fish and wildlife through blocked habitat access, high maintenance costs and damaged road infrastructure.

As reflected in the House bill, Congress should preserve the National Culvert Removal, Replacement, and Restoration Grant at current funding levels to provide the support necessary to undertake upgrades that reduce disaster risk, effectively pass sediment and debris and restore stream functions.

America needs a comprehensive transportation bill that keeps roads open during and after storms, reduces collisions, and helps local economies prosper. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s robust endorsement of the BUILD America 250 Act demonstrates strong bipartisan support for achieving this.

To get the highest return on investment from the next surface transportation law, Congress must strengthen these Wildlife Crossings Program, the Protect Program and the National Culvert Removal, Replacement, and Restoration Grant in the final bill. Doing so will make Americans safer, wildlife better protected and communities more accessible and prosperous.

Forbes Tompkins works on The Pew Charitable Trusts’ U.S. conservation project; Ian Nakayama is senior government affairs manager at the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership; and Jason Smith is a vice president at Jacobs, a science-based consulting and advisory leader.