Commuters in, out and around the Tofino - Ucluelet region have new images to scope out while planning their trips.
B.C.’s Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure has added a new camera at the West Coast junction to provide enhanced views of the intersection.
“An older camera near the Ucluelet-Tofino junction provided only a single view of the highway to the north and later malfunctioned,” a ministry spokesperson told the Westerly News. “MOTI upgraded the replacement camera at the junction to now include comprehensive north, south and east views.”
The new junction camera is one of 11 additions the ministry brought to its viewing network in 2023 to help drivers check out traffic and weather conditions while planning their trips, especially during the winter months.
“Throughout the province, Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure crews locate the webcams strategically based on needs that residents, contractors or weather experts identify,” reads a media release announcing the new camera. “As part of network expansion every year, these latest additions bring the total DriveBC webcam network to 496 cameras delivering 1,013 views of current road conditions.”
The ministry has also added a camera along Hwy. 4 after West Coast travellers lost sight of Sutton Pass between Tofino - Ucluelet and Port Alberni when a bizarre lightning strike obliterated a radio repeater the Sutton Pass camera relied on in November, 2020.
“The junction camera was never considered a replacement to the Sutton Pass camera. It is far away from the junction, showing entirely different conditions than the pass camera once provided,” the spokesperson said. “To replace the pass camera, MOTI installed a new camera with east and west views at the Taylor River rest area entrance, where there is available power, cell network access and similar climate conditions to Sutton Pass.”
Commuters can check out the new camera views at drivebc.ca.
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