Stony Trail/Bow River Bridge Fog Detection System

Location

Calgary, Alberta

Expertise

Transportation – Intelligent Transportation Systems

Infrastructure – Roads

As a part of the Stoney Trail over the Bow River Bridge project, Associated Engineering provided technical recommendations regarding the use of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) to manage visibility issues caused by weather events (specifically fog conditions) posing a risk to driver safety in the Bow River Valley on the future Stoney Trail (Highway 201) bridge over the Bow River.

The analysis focused on the use of a road weather information system (sensors, road weather information station, variable message signs) for detecting visibility and bridge deck conditions which automatically generated alerts to drivers through variable message signs upstream of the bridge deck. Other ITS were also investigated including the potential for variable speed limits which could also be automated based on visibility and driving conditions.

Project Highlights

A future consideration for automated speed enforcement was also reviewed including jurisdiction, infrastructure ownership, and ongoing operations. There was a discussion on the benefits of expanding the City of Calgary CCTV cameras onto Stoney Trail for incident management and information sharing between the City of Calgary and Alberta Transportation.