Highway gets new camera

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
Just in time for the winter months, the Wyoming Department of Transportation has installed a weather camera, sensors and a closure gate at Four Corners, an unincorporated community in northeastern Weston County, to better aid department employees and the public during the snowy season, according to Newcastle’s residential engineer, John Leahy. Four Corners is located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 85 and Wyoming Highway 585
“We are just doing the commissioning of the camera this week. I am not sure if it is uploaded on the state’s website yet. The camera will eventually be hooked up to Wyoming 511,” Leahy said. 
Leahy said he hopes that before the winter weather hits, the camera footage will be accessible online to the public and for department employees to access for weather condition map updates and better monitoring of road conditions. 
“The cameras help us to monitor and provide information to the public. We have the traffic monitoring center, and this will give them and the maintenance department (snowplows) the ability to remotely check roads so we don’t have to have someone drive out there to see if they need sanded or plowed,” Leahy said. “There are also sensors embedded in the road that can help us predict when the road will ice up for better response with the plows and sanding.” 
He noted that if the road is in need of closure due to visibility issues, department employees can access that information on the screens and update the maps in real time. 
“The areas without camera, someone has to report. Primarily this gives us a better ability to manage resources. That is the No. 1 thing,” Leahy said, adding that the real-time updates are crucial in areas where the weather can change rapidly. 
According to Leahy, the closure gate, camera and information system were added at the intersection of Wyoming Highway 585 and U.S. Highway 85 North because the weather can change rapidly in the area and there are quite a few times during the winter months that road conditions vary greatly between the two highways. 
“There are quite a few times that when you go north on Highway 85, it is worse than 585 and 585 is still passable,” Leahy said. “This gives WYDOT the option if South Dakota closes their portion of Highway 85 to close the road there.”
Leahy said that this gives the traveling public alternate routes to take, if necessary. 
“Both of these features should be available this winter for use,” Leahy said. “Eventually, this will be accessible through the WYDOT website. The road closure gate is still being worked on, getting everything powered up. There are also some advance warning signs that need to be put up. That will probably be a month or two out before we are actually done with everything.” 
The public can use Wyoming 511 online to access the camera footage and up-to-date weather conditions maps once the installation is complete.