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Pair of Bison Bring Highway Traffic to a Standstill Near Buffalo Gap, Texas

When central Texas resident Danielle Robertson encountered a traffic jam outside the town of Buffalo Gap on her way home to nearby Tuscola on January 22, she thought it was due to a car accident.

The actual reason turned out to be much more literal: two bison were running loose on the highway.

Robertson was driving down US 83/84 when she noticed the lights of the Taylor County Sheriff patrol cars, and slowed her vehicle. She told Storyful, “I assumed it was an accident, but threw on the brakes when I saw two buffalo charging the center cables.”

The video shows the two bison on the northbound side of the highway as a patrol car is attempting to lead them off the road. At one point, one of the animals begins to charge at the sheriff’s vehicle, but turns around before coming into contact with the car.

Deputies were able to block off a section of the highway with several patrol cars, and corral the buffalo using an SUV to make sure they got off the road.

Fittingly, the video was recorded near the town of Buffalo Gap, so named in 1877 because at the time, bison traveled through the area on their way to the high plains. But according to local media, it is rare for bison to disrupt traffic these days.

“The Taylor County Sheriff’s Department successfully wrangled and penned the bison and safely relocated them both,” Robertson told Storyful, and she was on her way home shortly after. Credit: Danielle Robertson via Storyful