NAWALPARASI, Oct 4: Two more overhead canopy bridges will be built in forest areas along the Narayanghat-Butwal section of the East-West Highway to allow monkeys to cross the busy road safely.
The bridges are planned in the forests between Kawasoti and Lokaha and between Chormara and Arunkhola along the highway section, which has been expanded to four lanes under Asian Highway standards.
Engineer Shiva Khanal, information officer for the eastern section of the Narayanghat Butwal Road Expansion Project, said the bridges are being introduced following an increase in road accidents involving monkeys.
Worried by monkey nuisance, Baglung local level to build 'monke...
“Monkeys have increasingly been moving from the hills towards the Tarai, leading to more accidents on the highway,” Khanal said. “People have also died in accidents caused by monkeys crossing the road, so these bridges are intended to reduce such incidents.”
One canopy bridge has already been built in the Pitaunji forest at Gaindakot 10 in Nawalparasi East. Khanal said monkeys have occasionally been seen using the bridge.
He said it was still too early to assess its effectiveness. The project plans to place fruit near the bridge initially to encourage monkeys and other animals to use the crossing.
Each canopy bridge costs less than Rs 500,000, making it a relatively inexpensive measure to reduce wildlife related road accidents and damage, according to Khanal.
The existing bridge at Gaindakot was constructed under the project’s biodiversity conservation and promotion programme. The structure, stretching 34 metres across the highway and measuring four feet wide, is designed mainly to help monkeys cross the busy road without coming into contact with vehicles.
Khanal said the canopy bridges are part of efforts to maintain natural wildlife movement, conserve biodiversity, reduce collisions between vehicles and wild animals, and make road infrastructure more environmentally friendly.
The road expansion project has also undertaken other biodiversity conservation measures, including constructing water ponds inside forests along the highway and supporting efforts to control wildlife poaching.
