Intersection trail Cam

Regarding the trail cam posts below: There is a 4-way intersection maybe 100 yards from our house. Two stop signs.
Since we moved here 12 or so years ago, there was one, maybe two accidents a year there.
By the way, this is a rural area, farms and subdivisions, 2-3 miles from town. I think the speed limit is 45-50 or there abouts.
That doesn't seem to mean anything. I want a set of those road spikes, that I can punch a button and they pop up!!
Last year there were four accidents. No one killed, but some injuries. One accident involved three vehicles.
Last night (July 4th) there was another around midnight. Young lady in a Subaru hit a P/U that ran the stop sign.
Not injured, seat belt on, her cell called the police for her. Totaled her car (doesn't take much anymore!!).
The P/U didn't even stop!! Judging from the pic's I saw of her car, there HAD to be some serious damage to the P/U!!
I cannot see the intersection from my house, as there is another house in the way. If I'm out in the front yard aways,
I can see it. So, I have a game cam I think I'm gonna put up in a tree on our property about 50-60 yards from the intersection.
I'm gonna have to play with it a bit, as there are bunches of traffic on the thru road. Not sure how long a chip will last
or if it will override the older pic's when full. I can't use a Ring Doorbell or wi-fi set up, as it would never shut off!!
Also, gonna call the county commissioner and chat about a 4-way stop. There is another intersection one mile away
on the thru road that is almost as bad. Our intersection has a large cottonwood tree and a small hill that doesn't help, the other intersection
is a nice clear one.
I don't profess to be the best driver in the world, but no accidents for many years. Most stop signs, I do a slow rolling stop
being prepared to stop if any doubt at all. This intersection, I STOP!!!
OK, my rant for the day. One reason I have concerns about the intersection is that we sometimes
haul silage through that intersection when cutting nearby.
Thanks for hearing me out!!

Sounds like this was a 'was hit and run (at thier fault). Referring to the P/U driver who ran the sign and was aperently struck by oncoming. At mid-night on the fourth, this pretty much spells out an intoxicated driver, or atleast a driver that knew they were impaired enough to be over the .08 limit. I'm not sticking up for the impaired driver here, but if they are found tomarow, they will be charged with running a stop sign, and hit and run. Accident ruled thier fault (if thier caught). But if they pulled over at the scene of the accident like they were suppose to do, they would get all of that, minus the hit and run, and plus a DUI. Would you rather have a hit and run on your record, or a DUI??? Probably is what that driver was thinking. I'm not saying any of this is right to do. I am just saying.

If trail cam only takes pictures on motion activation and on timed intervals, it might be hard to get tag numbers. If it shoots video, it would increase the chances. But it would have to be set up at the right camara angle pertaining to the vehicle in question, and also corresponding with its direction of traffic. Set up the wrong way, it wouldn't catch the plate number unless your state requires front plates also (mine don't). Is what I'm getting at, if you don't get the plate number, your not really capturing anything more than what the eye witness seen themselves in the Subaru (knowing it was a P/U).

If you want to set up a trail cam rolling for 365 to maybe catch one hit and run, or maybe not, have at it I guess. I hope you own the property at that intersection, or can get permission from the people that do. I'm sure the county commissioner is not going to want you hanging up camara equipment on the stop sign, or placing it on the roadway. He's gonna tell you to do what you please on the private property there at the intersection (so long as you got permission from the landowners).

My 2 cents.

Hit and runs, are just awful and troubling to hear about. I'm with ya there. But we hear about them after the fact, and not before hand. Preventative measures such as the 4-way stop might be for a better cause. A drunk is apt to run any stop sign anywhere though. And not just this one.

Depending on where you live and the seriousness of the accident you could be charged with a felony, loose your license and face civil charges from the victim. Leaving the scene is never a good decision unless of course your already wanted. Then again drunks rarely make good decisions.

Kind of what I was thinking. A drunk likely well knows the seriousness of a DUI. But when put in a sticky situation and having to think on the fly, probably is not realizing the seriousness of a hit and run.

On another note, it's hard for law enforcement to make a DUI stick, if the driver has gotten away and then found days later. Without the failed breath or blood test at the time of the incident, they don't have much to go on but an assumption. And assumptions don't hold up very good in court. Not sure what makes a hit and run a felony. Probably varies by state, I'm guessing. Might be an injury accident in my state. But I really don't know for sure. And I'm sober. So a drunk likely wouldn't even know.

Most trail cameras I have used will not reliably trigger at 50 to 60 yards. At 50 to 60 feet they may not.

Is isn't easy to cover up major damage on a pickup. I would imagine that this driver will get caught and charged before too long. In the meantime, is it your intention to police the intersection? Better to leave that to the authorities.

Before you spend your time and money, talk to the local law enforcement and perhaps your attorney, concerning the legality and admissibility in court of what you plan to do.

What you are doing is setting up what amounts to a "red light camera" and if you're around any city or town that put in red light cameras, you know how they are overwhelmingly despised by the public. You may despise them yourself, so if you do this you would be a class A hypocrite.

Well, if we're complaining about bad intersections...there's three or four around here I can think of. At one the old lady on the corner has planters, flowers, gnome statues, etc. right up to the edge of the road. Got to have half your car in the road before you can see if there's any oncoming traffic. At another the guy has a fence and shrubberies, same thing, only it's a lot busier road and they really fly through there. Been a couple pile-ups and he still hasn't been made to take it down or move it back a little ways. I don't understand it? There was an old farmer that used to plant his garden right up to the edge of the road. He only planted short crops, cabbage, lettuce, pumpkins pickles; well, the road crews must of hated the guy as they would mow his garden when doing the road sides. I seen them do it over and over for 15-20 years, until he passed. Just not right.

The new wrinkle around here is some folks like to ride their pedal bikes right down the middle of the road. Supposed to be safer? easier to see? This one gal was riding in the middle when I came up from behind. It was on an uphill and I couldn't see if there were any cars coming so I had to slow down to her speed and she was slowing down further because of the hill. I tooted my horn as nice as I could, and she looked back then made a gesture for me to go around. The thing is there was no way for her to see over the hill yet either! I gotten behind her several times now and am seriously thinking of dropping a dime on her to the county boys. I believe in sharing the road, but that goes both ways.

As a retired police Lt. I sympathize with your sentiment but FWIW my advice would be for you to stay in your lane. It seriously doesn't sound like anything that needs your intervention.

Go ahead and set up a camera to record the intersection happenings, you may be able to sell to the highest bidding insurance company. The one whose client has a rightful claim and the one who wants the pictures buried. As far as road spikes, I think you were talking tongue in cheek, if not get that crazy idea out of your head. gobble

IF I put up a cam, it will be on my property.
No sense putting it on a stop sign or stop ahead sign, someone would steal it!!

Thanks for all the replies. you all have valid points.

If.. the camera is on your own land... you have all rights to film anything you can see. Supreme court has affirmed further that on PUBLIC land, you have all rights to film anything you can see. SO there is not much anyone can do about that.

I share your frustration, we live on a busy road and it's surprising there aren't more accidents! It sounds like your intersection would be a good place for a roundabout!

RE: round-abouts-Us old guys hate them because we hate change but they do keep the traffic moving. Once we get used to them, they aren't so bad. Where I grew up, there was "Cottonwood Corner". The original settlers wanted the twin benefits of making sure no one ever moved the surveying pin where the corners of 4 quarters met and there would always be a shady spot to rest the horses when doing field work. So, they planted a cottonwood tree over the pin. In later years, the county graded up the road around the tree. It became a land mark to give directions from for miles around. As usually happens, termites hollowed out the "behemoth old girl" and she came crashing down after a wind storm. She was kind of the first round about but I guarantee you that no drunks ran into it!

I agree. BUT, It would be rather difficult for a round-a bout.
Area, spacing, ditch bank, BIG tree so I'd settle for a 4-way stop.
I can hear the people screaming already!!!