I live in Northern Virginia and have started seeing small boxes and antennas mounted on light poles around the area. Anyone know what they are for?

The basically look like a shoe box mounted under the bar supporting the light above the street. A 12-18" antennas protrudes from the bottom of the box toward the street.

But I have seen the same thing here in wisconsin on the top of powerline poles,similar at least.

Some states have instituted a camera system at troubled intersections... Sensors sense the movement of oncoming cars, and then take stutter shuttered photos of the intersection, to later use in ticketting, accident trials, etc. This may be what you're seeing...

I believe what you are seeing is a complex system used by the National Weather Service to track lightning strikes.

We also have traffic and intersection cameras and these are not cameras.

They keep turning up on more light pools. They are usually 100-150 yards apart and usually within line of sight of another.

Originally posted by adcadcadc
I live in Northern Virginia and have started seeing small boxes and antennas mounted on light poles around the area. Anyone know what they are for?

The basically look like a shoe box mounted under the bar supporting the light above the street. A 12-18" antennas protrudes from the bottom of the box toward the street.

Could it be a solar power panel in case of a power failure or something?

They could be weather related indeed but they also could be law enforcement/EMS or commercial. PCS requires small antennas and little technology at the site (the biggest part of the technology is in the phone). I don't think this is the case because whatever it is, it's evidently being powered by a small transformer feeding from the power supply of the light and thats paid by the local city/county so I'd go with something they'd be into. It sounds like a small repeater system. About how tall are the antenna structures themselves? I would be guessing being that close together, we're talking at least a gigahertz in frequency. The higher the frequency, the smaller the antenna, the closer they need to be but they are much more clear and usually digital instead of analog. This would also allow for data transmission as well. If you're in a major metro area, this might even be for wireless internet service.

They been putting up Cameras on LIght poles here in Maryland for the last year. The story that its to track accidents and stuff is #ing bull#.

The antennaes have been around too. When I went to viriginia beach in 98 there was alot more cameras and stuff there.

The antennas cant be anything good, because their mounted high on light poles.

Why couldnt it be pinhole cameras or sensors? It could even interact with cars or cell phones.

could be wireless internet access points/bridges. people are throwing up hotspots all over the place now.

We have them too.
I think they are small area cell phone towers.

Owing to the furore that cell phone towers had created in the city they made smaller systems that are scattered around on the poles .. so I read somewhere. These 'may' be those systems, but its hard to prove.

Otherwise I have seen them on traffic lights and they are to remotely control the lights for emergency vehicles.

Originally posted by adcadcadc
I live in Northern Virginia and have started seeing small boxes and antennas mounted on light poles around the area. Anyone know what they are for?

The basically look like a shoe box mounted under the bar supporting the light above the street. A 12-18" antennas protrudes from the bottom of the box toward the street.

It's part of the new federal Smart Highway System that is being installed in every state. It's just one more tool in the arsenal of the NEW WORLD ORDER.

I also know that some small boxes on traffic lights are recievers for the firetrucks so that can turn the light green when they need to go through.

Originally posted by jetsetter
I also know that some small boxes on traffic lights are recievers for the firetrucks so that can turn the light green when they need to go through.

In most places this has been changed to turn the entire intersection RED, so that the emergency vehicle can cross without any traffic.

Originally posted by AZLS1

Originally posted by jetsetter
I also know that some small boxes on traffic lights are recievers for the firetrucks so that can turn the light green when they need to go through.

In most places this has been changed to turn the entire intersection RED, so that the emergency vehicle can cross without any traffic.

Now only I could get a remote control that could change the light to green whenever i wanted...

>>Now only I could get a remote control that could change the light to green whenever i wanted...

Some busses in Holland have this device. I always wanted to steal it from the driver. It makes a beepity-beep noise as the driver approaches the light, and the light changes. Sweet, never having to wait.

I saw a story on the news the other day about those light changing devices. Some company is selling them to civilians. It's illegal to have in most places. I'll see if I can find the company.

It's called the MIRT traffic light changer and costs $500.00

Ok, I just read more about this thing. It works using an infra red strobe light so it wouldn't need an antennae. I don't know what you're seeing.



[Edited on 11-18-2003 by JFetch]

I've heard they were for emergency vehicies, but who knows?

I also live in Northern Virginia!

I have noticed some odd looking meter thing with what looks like aluminum tanks on it.
I see them on the side of the major roads and Highways.
Never noticed them before 9/11, but I could be wrong.

I remember reading an article from a washington post editorialist saying, he was taking pictures of something similar and was confronted by park police on the mall.
They questioned him for his interest in the object.

Maybe some kind of air meter to see what is in the air?
I will try to get a pic of one.

They are for wireless internet access. I saw something on TV about them a few days ago. They were explaining the company and what it does.