Wireless Camera Systems and Web-Informatics for Environmental Monitoring of Transportation Corridors

Environmental monitoring of transportation infrastructure is a critical activity for transportation agencies. Despite advances in wireless instruments and computing capabilities, environmental monitoring technology for highways (e.g., for wildlife occurrence) lags behind that used for traffic. The authors describe the creation of automated methods for web-system processing of photographic monitoring data from cell/wireless-communicating camera systems at purpose-built and opportunistic wildlife crossing structures. The work flow culminated is a common strategy for taking image files from the camera supply chain and automatically creating records in a web-database. In order to integrate the physical camera system into transportation decision-making, environmental monitoring, and stewardship activities, the project was conducted with state DOT technical staff. The combined cell/wireless camera and web-systems represent an advance over traditional remote cameras with desktop databases in that their output is viewable almost instantly on the web via a wireless data transportation service. Although streaming wildlife camera data are not new, “wildlife traffic cameras” have not been previously used before in this way. The authors developed a model system that any DOT could adopt for areas with wired, wireless, or cell system connectivity, including using existing infrastructure to add wildlife monitoring to the data input stream. Systematic collection of wildlife movement information at the “right-of-way” not only benefits long-term and project related stewardship needs, but it also provides an opportunity to share wildlife data and imagery directly with the public. This combination of science and public relations is increasingly important as public knowledge and awareness contributes towards safer wildlife interactions with highways and traffic.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ADC30 Standing Committee on Ecology and Transportation.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Shilling, Fraser M
  • 0000-0001-8125-2186
  • Waetjen, David
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 95th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2016-1-10 to 2016-1-14
• Date: 2016

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; Maps; References;
• Pagination: 14p
• Monograph Title: TRB 95th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Cameras; Connectivity; Data collection; Environmental monitoring; Infrastructure; Transportation corridors; Wildlife
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Environment; Highways; I15: Environment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01587921
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 16-2452
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Jan 27 2016 5:12PM