The traffic camera at the entrance to Stub Stewart State Park entrance. Photo: ODOT
A traffic camera initially expected to go live in April has been activated as of Wednesday, May 26 on Highway 47, facing south with a view of the entrance to Stub Stewart State Park.
Live just in time for motorists to use in trip planning for Memorial Day weekend travel, the camera installation also features a weather station that pipes weather information to the Oregon Department of Transportation’s travel planning website, tripcheck.com.
Every few minutes, the camera snaps a photo, which ends up on ODOT’s tripcheck.com. The cameras are used by motorists, commercial drivers, newscasters, and more to check road and weather conditions. The cameras are not used for speed enforcement.
“Most major electrical work has been completed,” said Lou Torres, a public information officer for ODOT in an email to the Banks Post in February.
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The cameras aren’t the only traffic cameras to be installed in the region recently. A camera and weather station in what might be considered downtown Timber at Timber Road and Railroad Avenue was added to Tripcheck on February 11. The weather station portion of that installation is expected to go live after additional work is done by the county, according to Heather Sturgill, a public information officer with Washington County Land Use and Transportation.
On April 1, a traffic camera went live in Gales Creek at the junction of Highway 6 and 8, also with a weather station.
Chas Hundley is the editor of the Banks Post and sister news publications the Gales Creek Journal and the Salmonberry Magazine. He grew up in Gales Creek and has a cat.
