RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

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Tom Williams
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RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by Tom Williams »

Hi there, I was out driving in my local area, and I went along the ewyas harold camp road, on the road, just before the camp, was this induction loop, which I thought was weird as I couldnt see any obvious box next to it, I would guess it's now disused but was wondering what the use of it would be? would it be something to do with monitoring the traffic levels on the road?

Tom
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jervi
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by jervi »

Could be a counter.
See if there is a traffic count at that location / on that road using the sabre map (toggle on "traffic counts") - https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/maps/
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Tom Williams
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by Tom Williams »

jervi wrote: Sun Mar 21, 2021 19:43 Could be a counter.
See if there is a traffic count at that location / on that road using the sabre map (toggle on "traffic counts") - https://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/maps/
Having just had a look, I cannot see any traffic count near or at this location, I would guess that it's for the army site to track how much traffic is using the road at any one time.
Tom
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traffic-light-man
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by traffic-light-man »

Traffic count loops are typically in pairs, because more often than not, the direction, speed and classification of vehicles are recorded.

It is possible to use single loops, but they're generally not as useful unless you just want an overall figure or PCU count. I believe there are now some systems which will classify based on the period of occupancy on the loop, but I can see quite a few possibilities for anomalies in the dataset with those.
Simon
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jervi
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by jervi »

Also due to width of the road and the loop it is unlikely to pick up cycles.
If you say it was near a former MOD base, then it may be linked in with the security systems if the road has low usage for any other traffic
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traffic-light-man
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by traffic-light-man »

I'll be honest, I'm not sure I've seen a standard loop based traffic counter record cycles as cycles, if at all. Dedicated cycle counters are out there though, with piezo strips and radar based detection being the common ones, but they're usually reserved for dedicated cycle facilities.
Simon
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Tom Williams
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by Tom Williams »

jervi wrote: Sun Mar 21, 2021 21:44 Also due to width of the road and the loop it is unlikely to pick up cycles.
If you say it was near a former MOD base, then it may be linked in with the security systems if the road has low usage for any other traffic
That may well be true because the camp (which is still going) did used to have Watchmen on either end of the road to keep an eye on the traffic.

Tom
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traffic-light-man
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by traffic-light-man »

Tom, I know you said there's nothing next to it, but are there any cabinets anywhere nearby? It might give an indication of its purpose.
Simon
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Tom Williams
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by Tom Williams »

traffic-light-man wrote: Mon Mar 22, 2021 16:27 Tom, I know you said there's nothing next to it, but are there any cabinets anywhere nearby? It might give an indication of its purpose.
Hi Simon, I have had a look and I cannot see any form of box next to it, it looks as though the loop is linked to the site by a cable that goes along the road and into the site.
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RichardA35
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by RichardA35 »

Tom Williams wrote: Mon Mar 22, 2021 17:18
traffic-light-man wrote: Mon Mar 22, 2021 16:27 Tom, I know you said there's nothing next to it, but are there any cabinets anywhere nearby? It might give an indication of its purpose.
Hi Simon, I have had a look and I cannot see any form of box next to it, it looks as though the loop is linked to the site by a cable that goes along the road and into the site.
Any chance of a GSV link? I have an idea but it depends upon location and wider context. Thanks.
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Tom Williams
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by Tom Williams »

RichardA35 wrote: Mon Mar 22, 2021 17:44
Tom Williams wrote: Mon Mar 22, 2021 17:18
traffic-light-man wrote: Mon Mar 22, 2021 16:27 Tom, I know you said there's nothing next to it, but are there any cabinets anywhere nearby? It might give an indication of its purpose.
Hi Simon, I have had a look and I cannot see any form of box next to it, it looks as though the loop is linked to the site by a cable that goes along the road and into the site.
Any chance of a GSV link? I have an idea but it depends upon location and wider context. Thanks.
Hi, here is the link: England
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Qhc4bDe3XyeK2J1EA
In the Google maps scan, there does appear to be a box there, but when I was there, there was none.
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traffic-light-man
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by traffic-light-man »

That looks like a solar powered count cabinet to me.
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yen_powell
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by yen_powell »

Looks like a permanent traffic counter. We have a few left over about town, no one has collected any data from them for the last 15 years after a restructure removed the department who looked after them and they got forgotten about.

I used to lay temporary loops using a type of toffee gloop with 4 coils of wire forming a 1m square with black duct tape over the top. We would put 4 squares down with 1m gaps between them to catch traffic going in both directions and their speed. They would last quite a few weeks.

Sometimes we'd lay the rubber tubes. You lay these in parallel rows to get the direction of traffic recorded. One end is sealed with a road nail plug, the other plumbs into the counter. Tested them before leaving site by hitting the two tubes twice each with a club hammer to simulate a single car passing over and see if it registered on the box. The local 'yoof' used to slash them with a knife to amuse themselves. When they realised we just replaced them if we saw them all cut up they took to slitting them lengthways instead so they would look in good order but no longer held air and so didn't count.
Kevin Roads
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Re: RE: induction loop detector in the middle of nowhere

Post by Kevin Roads »

A few years ago there was talk that the operators of the camp wanted to make the road 'No Entry Except for access' or similar. Whilst this didn't come to fruition, the counter may have been installed as part of this case.
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