Collaborative tools to optimise linear infrastructure vegetation for regional habitat connectivity
提出一种基于资产的方法，沿铁路走廊绘制栖息地连通性热点图，整合结构和功能连通性分析，帮助管理者优先进行生态干预和减少野生动物碰撞。
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.