The wildlife crossing designed to help mountain lions, deer, bobcats and other creatures safely travel over the 101 Freeway between the Simi Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains will reach a major milestone on Monday,

Officials said it will take several weeks and about 6,000 cubic yards of soil to build the foundation for the 1-acre wildlife habitat being created over 10 lanes of the 101 freeway in Agoura Hills. The project is designed to provide a safe crossing for mountain lions, deer, bobcats and other animals.

After the soil is laid across the nearly 1-acre native wildlife habitat site, about 5,000 native shrubs and wildflowers collected from the surrounding area will be planted on the crossing.