17 December 2008

The System Works

So today a simple winter snowstorm came through New Brunswick. It was clear this morning and the sky lowered and dumped about 15 cm of snow on the province. The key I think was that the humidity and temperature were both low and the snow was not sticking or melting. This meant that the cameras had a chance to collect images without snow or ice accumulation.

That meant that the cameras could be used as a reasonably accurate and current indication of both local weather and road conditions. The images at supper time were clear and useful like this one ...
From HWY171208

And this one ...
From HWY171208

The only problems I saw were The Cope Loop Road ...
From HWY171208

and Moncton - Dieppe
From HWY171208


So the system worked pretty much the way it was supposed to. And this is what the rest of the province looked like at suppertime.

08 December 2008

What a Difference a Day Makes

From HWY081208

The storm was not as bad as expected, the worst was in the middle of the province near Fredericton. The snow came down wet and then the temperature dropped meaning that the snow froze. That made the roads trecherous.

The light was good this afternoon and the cameras were picking up details you don't normally see like the sea smoke in the harbour at Saint John.
From HWY081208

Or the river in behind the church in Durham Bridge.
From HWY081208

All in all the small amount of snow did make the province look "better". A couple of web cameras are down or obscured by the snow but it was not as bad as last time.

And this is what the rest of the province looked like:

06 December 2008

A Quiet Waiting

From HWY051208

It seems that the province is quietly waiting for winter to come. We had our Remembrance Day storm and the snow from that system still lingers in many parts of the province.

From HWY051208

Some more than others.

From HWY051208

All in all the province has had a pretty mild fortnight since the last significant snow and the accumulated snow has pretty much melted away. That said, the province is expected to get a snow storm this weekend even though the extended forecast for this winter is mild and wet. We shall see.

Moncton continues to have its cameras blink off and on and are sticking to the dynamic image. MRDC Salisbury went fuzzy after the last snow storm and never came back to a crisp image. The traffic cameras proved to be less than totally useful in the last snow storm with the image lost to accumulated snow for many of the cameras. If the purpose of these cameras is to inform the travelling public what the current conditions are you would think that the cameras would be located with the following criteria:
1) accessible for maintenance (and the assumption of maintenance)
2) unobstructed view of the roadway
3) field of view such that an extended view of the roadway from near to far is observed.
4) orientation so that the rising or setting sun does not obscure the image
5) reasonably rapid change in image to reflect current conditions.

And yet many of the cameras seem to violate these simple ideals.

This is what the province looked like today: