By Ann Briggs

They’re big, beautiful and majestic, but when they wander onto high-speed highways the results can be deadly; we’re talking about elk. Weighing in at more than 500 to 700 pounds, elk pose a serious safety risk for drivers and passengers in vehicle-wildlife collisions.

As part of an ongoing project, we’ve been studying wildlife crossings under Interstate 90 since 2010 in the North Bend area, where the number of elk-vehicle collisions has been increasing. On average, 16 elk-vehicle collisions have been recorded in this area each year over the past five years. In addition to tracking a growing urban elk herd, during this research we learned that one of two wildlife crossings in this area had the highest black bear use documented for any highway crossing structure in North America.

We’re developing plans to install an 8-foot-high fence along I-90 in the North Bend area. While a fence is an effective way to prevent collisions, it also blocks normal wildlife migration and may interfere with their access to habitats and food needed for survival. We use motion-triggered cameras at bridges and culverts to learn what species use these safe passages to cross under the interstate and how frequently. The information is vital to developing an effective project design that allows for safe wildlife crossings and addresses fencing needs.

All was well until Nov. 10, when we discovered that nine cameras in three locations had been stolen. The value of the stolen cameras, along with their protective steel boxes, media cards, rechargeable batteries and shielded padlocks, is estimated at $7,000. This is one of the biggest losses the program has experienced. Unfortunately, it’s brought our monitoring of structures in the North Bend area to an end; we’ve taken down all remaining cameras to prevent further loss to taxpayers.

A person of interest

We discovered that one camera, mounted in a tree not far from a stolen camera, photographed a person of interest carrying a long steel bar, his face covered by a bandana. We’d like to know who he is so that we can ask him some questions. If you recognize this person or have any other information, please call Kelly McAllister, WSDOT wildlife biologist, at 360 705-7426.

In the meanwhile, we’ll use the data we’ve gathered so far to move this important safety project forward. The fencing project is currently unfunded.

You’ve asked why we don’t just relocate the cameras in the highway median or in other areas where trees would not obscure the view. The locations for the new cameras were also carefully chosen to provide for the most efficient camera operations. Those locations take into account the availability of supporting hardware, adequate access for camera maintenance, and the length of the corridor covered at each location. It’s important that the cameras have a full 360 degree clear line of sight to operate properly. 

You’ve asked why we are installing cameras instead of fixing bridges or roads. It’s important that you know that one is not sacrificing the other, and here’s why. The funding for the camera installation came from a 2011 Federal TIGER III Grant, which was actively sought in partnership with Joint Base Lewis-McChord and neighboring jurisdictions to address highway congestion by improving traffic operations. This grant was not available for maintenance and preservation needs, so the cameras are not being installed at the sacrifice of other funded work within WSDOT. The total grant funding came to $15,000,000. More information about the awarded grant can be found on the following linked pdf:
http://www.dot.gov/sites/dot.dev/files/docs/TIGER_2011_AWARD.pdf. 

You’ve said that we just have too many people and too few roads, and you don’t see how cameras will help reduce congestion. WSDOT agrees with you that we are at a critical service level on many of our state’s highways. We also know that we can’t build our way out of congestion. So what can we do? We can maximize the effectiveness of our existing highway system. We do that by installing intelligent transportation devices, and cameras are only one piece of that puzzle. 

Cameras are especially good at helping first responders like the State Patrol and local fire jurisdictions to respond more quickly to, and to clear, roadway incidents. Much of our traffic congestion (some say up to 50%) is caused from lane closures caused by collisions. Anything we can do to increase response times goes a long way in reducing overall congestion. Just as important, the new cameras will support efficient operations of 17 new ramp meters being installed within the corridor. The cameras will allow WSDOT staff to control ramp meter rates during heavy traffic, which will help traffic move better along the mainline highway and reduce collisions at merge points (that collision effect again). Cameras also provide real time traffic information to the public and media through our web pages.

Along with the cameras and ramp meters, WSDOT will also install variable message signs, travel time signs and data stations. All of these devices help WSDOT communicate with you, the driver, so you can make informed decisions about your travel plans. 

WSDOT has several web pages that discuss the improvements that are being made for the I-5 JBLM corridor. The active construction project that involves installing the seven new closed circuit TV cameras can be found here:
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/i5/sr510congestmgmt/

More information about the benefits of ITS devices can be found here:  http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Operations/ITS/

We understand that you do not want trees to be cut down. We recognize that trees improve our standard of living and help define the Pacific Northwest. We are removing only necessary trees, and we are replanting 500 trees after the construction project is complete. The trees will be planted at two locations, the I-5/Marvin Road area in Lacey and the I-5/DuPont Steilacoom Road in DuPont. 

Thank you for your comments and understanding.

The way people are using the Internet is shifting: Cellphones are getting smarter, tablets are more easily accessible and all of these devices are finding their way into more hands as Internet access becomes more affordable. We’re paying close attention to this and are seeing it reflected in our own Web statistics.

Wait, a transportation agency that focuses on state highways and ferries is worried about how people use the Internet? Why yes, we are!  

Here's what we’ve seen:

• The number of people who are accessing our website on a daily basis has increased since the same time last year, from 78,000 unique visitors a day in 2011 to nearly 90,000 a day in 2012.
• Mobile device usage is also surging. Compared to the same time last year (January-June), the number of mobile devices visiting our website has gone from 4.5 million visits to 8.7 million visits.
• We now have more than 200,000 downloads of our iPhone and Android mobile app.

Example of one of the traffic camera images that gets a lot of use during a winter storm.

So why pay attention to this? During the snowstorm on Jan. 17, 2012, we saw more than 800,000 people access our website. That's nearly 12 percent of Washington’s population. What happens if that grows? How can we best position ourselves to handle that amount of traffic, or higher, again?

Building the infrastructure that would be needed to handle these infrequent weather spikes just isn't a good use of taxpayer dollars. Over the years, we've made numerous improvements so that we can function during those types of bad weather days. However, to ensure the information that you need to make informed travel decisions is available whenever and wherever you need it, we need to think outside the box. 

Instead of buying a whole farm of computer servers to accommodate the amount of requests for information we might get during one crazy storm, we will be testing cloud technology.  Essentially, we’re renting the ability to handle that spike in requests so that you can make travel decisions in an emergency.

What is cloud technology? Think of it this way – if we use just one computer to provide information, it can only handle so many simultaneous requests. If instead, we put our camera images to a location that has access to a really big server we can ensure the images you want to see will be available when you need it.

So what does this mean to you? On Wednesday, Oct. 10, and Thursday, Oct. 11, we are shifting all of the traffic camera images from our servers to the cloud to test our ability to make this change.  Testing this now means we’ll be ready when that crazy weather or emergency situation causes people to immediately go to our website to see what is happening.  On a more technical note, for those of you who have linked to the images, you won’t notice a difference; the urls will remain the same.

You may have to be patient with us Wednesday and Thursday, but we're crossing our fingers that you won't notice a thing.  If, however, you do see something unusual, be sure to let us know.

How do you know what your commute is going to be like? If you’re like a lot of people, you might check out one of our many traffic cameras. We have several hundred cameras statewide showing road conditions along a variety of big interstates and smaller state highways. Add to that our data loops that give you a color-coded clue of whether traffic is stop-and-go (black) or free-flowing (green), and our travel alerts page, and drivers can get a pretty good idea of what to expect on the road before they ever get in the car.

But some stretches of highway are what we call our blind spots. With no cameras and no data loops, the only way to know what traffic is like is to be there. Or have ESP. And on the highways, the unexpected is rarely good news.

Fortunately for drivers, we’ve recently added to our arsenal of cameras. In February, we brought 18 new cameras online between Everett and Arlington and hooked up one new camera to show conditions at the I-90/SR 18 interchange. But wait, there’s more: Later this month, seven new cameras in Pierce and Thurston counties will give drivers a bird’s-eye view of traffic between Lacey and Joint Base Lewis-McChord. And by June, drivers in southern Thurston County can use six new cameras to check their commute, too.

If you’re adding it all up, that’s 32 brand spankin’ new cameras covering a whopping 36 miles of highway: 16 miles in northern Snohomish County, one new mile along I-90 in North Bend, 11 miles in Pierce County and eight in Thurston County.  Goodbye blind spots, hello travel planning.

If you’re one of those people who’s more curious about how long your commute will take – in minutes rather than black and red dots on a map – you’re in luck, too. Travel times from Tacoma to Olympia (and vice versa) will start appearing Monday, March 12, on our Tacoma and Olympia traffic pages. Add that to the travel times already available on the Seattle Traffic page, and drivers can get a pretty good estimate of how long it will take to travel from Seattle and points north to Tacoma and points south. All with the click of a button (or two).

So the next time you head out for a road trip, or just hit the highway for your morning or evening commute, make sure to check out our new travel times and cameras. You might just save yourself some time (and frustration) now that you can know more before you go.

by guest blogger Jamie Holter

I love snow storms in Puget Sound.

Food Supply in the EOC

I love being in the stinky Emergency Operations Center in Shoreline with a flat of Costco muffins, Pirate Booty and satsumas.

Charlies Angels radio in the EOC

I love watching four news channels over different parts of the snow storm. Our maintenance crews planning their attack on snowy and icy roads, overheard on the
world’s oldest Charlie’s Angels two-way radio.  I love taking calls from staff reporting for duty who say, “When do you need me, just let me know.” 

Monitoring television coverage

Our Emergency Operations Center had been active since Saturday.  A storm manager on with King County, the National Weather Service and doing interviews; a traffic engineer tracking cameras and collisions, another person who’s tracking collisions just involving buses and large trucks . Those vehicles that cause the biggest problems.  Everyone is at the top of their game, except for the moments when they are mugging for the camera.

The traffic management center, the nerve center for operations in Puget Sound, has more staff tracking traffic, putting up information on overhead signs, talking with crews in the field and dispatching teams to trees down, icy spots on the roads or helping State Patrol.

Staff Monitoring Twitter

Then, of course, the public information corner: the kings of @wsdot_traffic. Their clever and informative tweets retweeted to thousands…when they aren’t putting together videos and taking pictures of our workers. They tell me they love their job. I know they do.

Snow and ice is always scary and I’m proud that my job involves helping people stay on top of road and weather conditions even if we’re just stuck in a building and not on the roads like our Highway Heroes who do the heavy lifting. The folks I work with are top-notch, dedicated public servants. We can’t make Mother Nature change course, but we are here to help you get where you

Crews on roadway

need to go when she’s busy breaking Seattle snow records.

By Guest Blogger Jeff Adamson

The newest addition to the traffic camera images available on our website offers you another eye on Stevens Pass traffic conditions.

The new camera is on top of the Variable Speed Limit sign that we installed last year, about 2-1/2 miles below the summit on the west side of the pass. That’s about a half mile below the Old Faithful Avalanche zone (that’s where we have the two M-60 tanks pointed - where most of the winter avalanche control is necessary). That’s also the steepest (5-6%) grade on the pass. It is where most trucks and cars get stuck. Typically that is due to one of two reasons:

1. Those who stop to pick up hitchhiking snowboarders who slid down the avalanche chutes (DANGEROUS) and want to get back to the ski area, so they can do it again, or
2. Those who figured out they shouldn’t have ignored the signs and stop in the middle of the lane to put on their chains (and cause a chain reaction of cars that had to stop and can’t get started again).

It makes it pretty obvious why we wanted a camera there – it gives us and the State Patrol a new tool so we can respond more quickly and with the right equipment and crew members to deal with whatever is happening (an avalanche, slick pavement, a collision, stuck cars or a sideways semi). Besides the new camera, the original Stevens Pass camera that’s been on the web for a dozen years, moved last Friday, and so did the view it provides.

You may recall that we’re building a pedestrian bridge over the highway at the summit. It’s almost done and the old location of the camera and weather station on the shoulder of the highway at the west end of the ski area parking lot is now under several tons of concrete and steel – the north bridge support and ramp.

The weather station building with the tower on top where the camera is located got moved several hundred yards to the east end of the ski area parking lot, next to the highway shoulder. As a result, the camera is now facing the opposite direction from where it used to. It points back (west) toward the summit showing the pavement, the parking lot and the new bridge. For our maintenance staff, those are the things they need to monitor, but it can be a little confusing since the west view camera that we added a couple years ago is (obviously) also pointed west. (It’s located under the eave on the west side of the Stevens Pass Ski Lodge and shows the pavement and the ski area parking lot on the southwest side of the highway.) It also now shows the new right turn lane into that parking lot that we also built this summer. That has been a problematic (read “get stuck here”) access for years so our plow drivers, Incident Response Team members, State Troopers and ski area parking crew members are all looking forward to a winter without the spinouts and stoppages, there.
Back to the cameras – they update every minute and here are the links:

• Stevens Pass page: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/passes/stevens/#
• Old Faithful camera: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/cccam.aspx?cam=9145

The new $6,500 camera installation was paid for with WSDOT “low cost enhancement” funds (from our gas taxes). It brings the number of traffic cameras in the WSDOT’s North Central Region to 30 (If you go to the North Central Region camera page, there are 32 images, but two of those aren’t WSDOT cameras - Downtown Leavenworth and Waterville). Eleven years ago, the region installed its first traffic camera at the summit of Stevens Pass. Statewide, WSDOT offers 400+ traffic cameras to help motorists “Know before you go”.

Check out the new camera and bookmark it if you’re Stevens Pass skier, since the slopes should be ready for you by Thanksgiving.