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Thursday, Nov. 13, 2008

Caltrans offers details of fog system

The state Department of Transportation announced Wednesday details of its plan to build a fog warning system on a 12-mile stretch of Highway 99 in southern Fresno County and northern Tulare County that could serve as a model for future warnings systems throughout the San Joaquin Valley.

The $12 million project is scheduled to be completed in four to six weeks.

The pilot project is an improved version of a fog warning system in the Stockton area that has helped reduce crashes, officials said.

If the Fresno-Tulare counties system is successful, Caltrans may build similar systems elsewhere.

Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol said the project will use weather stations, vehicle motion detectors, visibility sensors and closed-circuit cameras to monitor weather and traffic patterns along the 12-mile stretch of highway. When the sensors detect slowing traffic or worsening fog conditions, the automated system will flash alerts about dangerous and foggy conditions on message signs.