Moreton Bay leads the way with efforts to drive down koala road deaths
Published 24 April 2026
- Council has installed 49 permanent Fauna Escape Hatches designed to allow koalas to exit road corridors safely
- The fauna hatches developed by Endeavour Veterinary Ecology (EVE) with support from Council were installed following a successful Australia-first trial
- As part of its efforts to reduce wildlife road deaths, Council is also trialling larger hatches for macropods and continues to install seasonal signs in key wildlife collision hotspots
Koala conservation efforts are ramping up in Moreton Bay, with 49 roadside escape hatches installed for the endangered marsupial following a successful Australia-first trial.
The Fauna Escape Hatch is a one-way egress device that allows koalas and other species to safely exit road corridors to nearby bushland while preventing re-entry
The new hatches have been installed at various wildlife hotspots across the City, including Youngs Crossing and Samsonvale Road at Joyner; Kremzow Road, Lilley Road and Old Northern Road at Cashmere; and Gympie Road at Petrie and Lawnton.
The major installation project comes after a successful in-network trial of the hatches, which were developed by local business Endeavour Veterinary Ecology (EVE) with support from Council.
During the 12-month trial of 16 hatches across seven Council-managed roads, no koala fatalities were recorded at wildlife crossings where the devices had been installed on roadside fencing. And camera monitoring showed koalas and other native wildlife, including echidnas and bandicoots, using the one-way hatch to exit the road corridor into bushland.
Mayor Peter Flannery said Council was proud to be early adopters of the Australian-first innovation designed to reduce wildlife collisions and support road safety.
“We are committed to protecting our wildlife, including the iconic koala and EVE’s fauna hatches are helping us do just that,” he said.
“The trial showed us that these hatches provide effective exits for native animals when navigating roads, preventing them and road users from being injured or killed."
“We've worked with EVE to improve the design and have recently finished installing an updated version of the original fauna hatch at 49 sites."
“This project is a great example of Council supporting innovation in our City by backing a local organisations efforts to develop a new and innovative product, which in this case has proven to be a life-saving device."
Endeavour Veterinary Ecology Environmental Manager - Technology Natasha Banville said the Moreton Bay program demonstrated how local government infrastructure programs could support. The development and refinement of wildlife mitigation infrastructure through in-network trials and monitoring.
“What started as a trial to understand how koalas navigate roads has evolved into the Fauna Escape Hatch program through ongoing monitoring, design refinement and collaboration with Council," she said.
“City of Moreton Bay's Green Infrastructure Network Delivery Program is exemplary, and programs like this provide a valuable opportunity to test and refine mitigation infrastructure in real road environments."
“It is very encouraging to now see the hatches being installed more broadly as part of Council's road infrastructure, helping reduce wildlife road mortality and improve connectivity across our road networks."
To roll out the life-saving devices, Council utilised a grant available under the State Government's SEQ Koala Threat Management Initiatives (KTMI) program.
Recently verified by the Infrastructure Sustainability Council, EVE’s Fauna Escape Hatch is becoming a standard feature in road infrastructure projects across Queensland.
City of Moreton Bay is also working with EVE to trial their new, larger hatches for macropods on Bribie Island, a hotspot for collisions involving kangaroos.
Council will continue to examine locations where fauna hatches can be deployed to protect koalas, with plans already afoot to install the devices at sites in Kallangur and Caboolture.
Council is also continuing to install seasonal signs in key wildlife collision hotspots across the City's local road network, advising drivers about the increased risk of encountering wildlife on the road during peak wildlife breeding and dispersal times.
As part of its wildlife conservation efforts, Council has granted an initial 10-year community lease for the Moreton Bay Wildlife Hospital to operate the City's first dedicated wildlife hospital on Council-allocated land.
Locations of the 49 EVE fauna hatches:
Youngs Crossing at Joyner (7)
Samsonvale Road Joyner (4)
Samsonvale Road, Bray Park (2)
Kremzow Road, Cashmere (5)
Lilley Road, Cashmere (4)
Gympie Road, Petrie (9)
Gympie Road, Lawnton (2)
Henry Road, Griffin (2)
Dohles Rocks Road, Griffin (2)
Old Northern Road, Cashmere (3)