Collaborative tools to optimise linear infrastructure vegetation for regional habitat connectivity

Linear transport infrastructure often fragments habitats, limiting species dispersal, yet vegetation along transport corridors can act as critical connectivity pathways in heavily modified landscapes. This study presents a novel, asset-orientated methodology to map habitat connectivity “hotspots” along railway corridors, integrating structural and functional connectivity analyses with high-resolution vegetation and woodland data. The approach segments rail lines into 10 m sections, applies patch-based and circuit-theory models, and extracts connectivity metrics into rail polygons to identify priority areas for ecological intervention and potential wildlife-vehicle collision mitigation. Applied to the West Midlands, UK, the method reveals railway verges contributing significantly to regional woodland connectivity, supporting evidence-based vegetation management and regional nature recovery planning. By reframing transport corridors as facilitators rather than barriers, this scalable, proof-of-concept framework enables multiple stakeholder decision making, aligns with biodiversity and sustainability goals, and provides actionable spatial data for both transport infrastructure managers and regional authorities.