The Arizona Department of Transportation is set to start work this month on an Interstate 17 project to construct an overpass crossing for wildlife south of Flagstaff.

The project, funded through a federal grant, is an effort to improve wildlife habitat connections while reducing the risk of crashes involving animals, especially elk and deer, state officials said in a release.

ADOT is partnering with the Arizona Game and Fish Department on the $15.8 million effort, 12 miles south of Flagstaff, which also will install 8-foot-tall wildlife fencing along more than eight miles of the interstate.

Currently, the stretch has no bridges and only one road culvert suitable for use by elk and deer.

The earth- and native vegetation-covered wildlife overpass north of Willard Springs Road will be 100-feet wide and designed to allow a variety of animals, ranging from bears to elk, to cross over the highway, ADOT officials stated in the release.

Two bridge spans will include steel-reinforced concrete girders.

The project is scheduled for completion by fall 2026, officials said.

Crews will pave temporary I-17 median crossovers in the area to allow traffic to be shifted to one side of the highway, as needed, to limit closures while the overpass is being built. Safety barrier walls will be placed between the two directions of travel, according to ADOT.