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According to the city of Longview, there are now nine squirrel bridges built around Lake Sacajawea.<\/p>\n
The Duvall project was spearheaded by local resident Nikita Kozhekin, who lives next to the crossing and said watching squirrels dart across the road inspired him to act.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“It’s a major hazard for all wild animals, the road crossings,” Kozhekin said, noting that squirrels are hit by cars more often than almost any other animal. He added that the bridge isn’t just good for wildlife \u2014 it helps drivers too, since people often swerve when they spot a squirrel in the road.<\/p>\n
The bridge’s contractor Andrey Pilat built the structure by twisting three ropes together, consulting an engineer along the way to make sure the design could hold up. Pilat is a general contractor with NCS Construction Service, LLC.<\/p>\n
“We did a bunch of research and we come up with this idea that this rope will hold that weight,” Pilat said. “The bridge itself is 80 feet long and about 16 feet off the ground.”<\/p>\n
It took the squirrels about a week to discover the bridge, but once a few started crossing, others quickly followed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kozhekin said he now regularly spots squirrels using it during his morning and evening dog walks \u2014 sometimes even pausing to think before climbing on. He hosts a website<\/a> with the backstory to why it’s meaningful to protect wildlife in his neighborhood.<\/p>\n