From the August 25th edition of Albany Times Union:
If you are going to the State Fair near Syracuse over the weekend you might hear some buzzing overhead.
That’s because they’ll be using drones to monitor traffic around the parking areas and roads leading to the fairgrounds.
Use of the unmanned devices is, in part, to help manage traffic in response to the snarls that came with a surge of visitors last year. An estimated 100,000 people showed up on the last day of the 2016 fair, and it took many about two hours to get from nearby exits to the fairgrounds.
Officials this year hope the bird’s-eye view will help them manage traffic flow better.
“We will be able to better respond to changing traffic conditions and ensure a smoother travel experience for visitors,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in announcing the use of the drones.
They’re being operated by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of Transportation and State Police.
In addition to forecasting potential traffic jams before they develop, drone operators can broadcast messages on electronic signs on the roads leading to the fairgrounds such as I-690, the Thruway and I-81.
Drones are increasingly being used for public safety functions, including search and rescue operations and surveying hazardous locations.
Earlier this summer, the Albany County Sheriff’s Department demonstrated a drone they hope can be used for tasks such as finding lost hikers or hovering over burning buildings to see if people are inside.
Other cities around the country such as Atlanta, Ga. have also started exploring how drones can be used to survey and hopefully smooth out traffic flow.
There are questions, though, especially about whether images recorded with a drone are kept and if they are used for other purposes.
Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple, in his demonstration earlier in the summer, said using drones in criminal investigations would be difficult since it would likely require a court order and the law on that front is rapidly evolving.
The New York Civil Liberties Union, when told of the State Fair drones, cautioned that the devices must stay in line with Constitutional provisions.
“The growing use of drone technology raises serious and novel threats to personal privacy,” the NYCLU’s Legislative Counsel Rashida Richardson said in a prepared statement.
“Surveillance of all kinds demands meaningful, enforceable privacy protections and any use of drones at the state fair must be in line with existing constitutional protections.”
State officials said the drones will be operated in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration rules and will remain within sight of the operators.
[email protected] @RickKarlinTU
If you are going to the State Fair near Syracuse over the weekend you might hear some buzzing overhead.
That’s because they’ll be using drones to monitor traffic around the parking areas and roads leading to the fairgrounds.
Use of the unmanned devices is, in part, to help manage traffic in response to the snarls that came with a surge of visitors last year. An estimated 100,000 people showed up on the last day of the 2016 fair, and it took many about two hours to get from nearby exits to the fairgrounds.
Officials this year hope the bird’s-eye view will help them manage traffic flow better.
“We will be able to better respond to changing traffic conditions and ensure a smoother travel experience for visitors,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in announcing the use of the drones.
They’re being operated by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of Transportation and State Police.
In addition to forecasting potential traffic jams before they develop, drone operators can broadcast messages on electronic signs on the roads leading to the fairgrounds such as I-690, the Thruway and I-81.
Drones are increasingly being used for public safety functions, including search and rescue operations and surveying hazardous locations.
Earlier this summer, the Albany County Sheriff’s Department demonstrated a drone they hope can be used for tasks such as finding lost hikers or hovering over burning buildings to see if people are inside.
Other cities around the country such as Atlanta, Ga. have also started exploring how drones can be used to survey and hopefully smooth out traffic flow.
There are questions, though, especially about whether images recorded with a drone are kept and if they are used for other purposes.
Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple, in his demonstration earlier in the summer, said using drones in criminal investigations would be difficult since it would likely require a court order and the law on that front is rapidly evolving.
The New York Civil Liberties Union, when told of the State Fair drones, cautioned that the devices must stay in line with Constitutional provisions.
“The growing use of drone technology raises serious and novel threats to personal privacy,” the NYCLU’s Legislative Counsel Rashida Richardson said in a prepared statement.
“Surveillance of all kinds demands meaningful, enforceable privacy protections and any use of drones at the state fair must be in line with existing constitutional protections.”
State officials said the drones will be operated in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration rules and will remain within sight of the operators.
[email protected] @RickKarlinTU
