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'Mammal ledges' built beneath new dual carriageway

Tony FisherBedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire
News imageNational Highways A ledge built in a culvert which is designed to provide a safe passage for mammals underneath a road. The culvert is brand new and there is no water in it. At the end a mound of earth is visible. It is a sunny day.National Highways
The mammal ledges are designed for small animals such as hedgehogs, rabbits, mice, voles and badgers

Ledges have been installed in small drainage tunnels beneath a road improvement project to provide safe passage for small animals.

The mammal ledges have been built in several culverts beneath the new A421 dual carriageway, between the Black Cat roundabout in Bedfordshire and the Caxton Gibbet roundabout in Cambridgeshire.

National Highways said they created "dry pathways that enable wildlife to pass safely underneath the road without entering the water".

They are designed to help species such as badgers, hedgehogs and other small mammals to continue to access their habitats.

News imageNational Highways A ledge designed for the safe passage of small mammals underneath a road. The ledge is on the outside of a culvert and turns at right angles as it goes under the culvert. Brown earth surrounds the culvert which is newly built and has no water in it.National Highways
The raised pathways provide a dry route for animals, allowing them to pass safely through the culvert without entering the water

Paul Salmon, senior project manager with National Highways, said: "Protecting the environment is central to both the design and construction of our scheme.

"Features like this help to improve habitat connectivity and support local wildlife."

He added that they had a deep understanding of the local environment as a result of extensive survey work.

The aim of the road project is to reduce congestion and speed up journey times, with about 80,000 drivers using the Black Cat roundabout each weekday.

The new 10-mile (16km) A421 dual carriageway is due to open in Spring 2027.

News imageNational Highways A design of the route of a new dual carriageway linking the Black Cat roundabout in Bedfordshire to the Caxton Gibbet roundabout in Cambridgeshire.National Highways
The new dual carriageway will replace the only stretch of single carriageway between the M1 near Milton Keynes and the ports of Harwich and Felixstowe

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