More Highway Cameras Online

Nova Scotia's highway cameras are growing in number and in popularity. The Department of Transportation and Public Works' website receives about 150,000 weekly visits to the highway cameras page.

With the addition of another camera this week on Highway 101 near Meteghan, there are now 32 cameras online, from Yarmouth to North Sydney. Ten new cameras have been added since December 2004. Another one will be online by the end of March, and will be located on Highway 103 at Exit 6, Hubbards.

"The highway cameras are a tool that motorists can use to check road conditions before heading out in their vehicles," said Ron Russell, Minister of Transportation and Public Works. "They are one feature of our road weather information systems, which help our road clearing crews decide when to salt and sand."

The province's road weather information systems, called RWIS, are automated weather reporting stations with special sensors embedded in the road and on nearby towers. These systems collect detailed data on weather conditions at and near the road surface. The stations are mounted with web cameras that provide staff and travellers with real-time images of highways. With the use of the RWIS sites, department staff can track storms throughout the province and call in plow operators when needed.

To view the highway camera locations and images, visit the Transportation and Public Works website at www.gov.ns.ca/tran/cameras/camera.asp . The site shows images of Nova Scotia's highways during daylight hours. The images are not meant to replace official weather and highway report information, but are provided as an additional source of information to the travelling public.

Funding for Nova Scotia's existing cameras are cost-shared by the federal and provincial governments. The cameras are located on highways 101, 102, 103, 104, 106, 125 and trunks 4 and 12.