Data measured in road weather station allows easier assessment of weather situation at station’s location. Drivers drive more carefully and thus road safety is improved if road users are informed of the weather conditions and if warning messages generated in the weather station are displayed. Road weather stations make it possible for road maintenance companies to clear the ice and snow in time and at the same time help supervising institutions to keep track of the road maintenance works. Feasibility studies performed in Nordic countries show that indirect savings for the society equal five times the cost of road weather station systems.

Road weather stations can be combined with various sensors and following parameters can be measured:

• air temperature and humidity;
• road surface and pavement temperature;
• thickness of water/ice layer; presence of snow, black ice or chlorides;
• type or precipitation;
• intensity of precipitation;
• visibility;
• wind speed and direction;
• atmospheric pressure.

Depending of the needs, road weather stations can be complemented with a camera and/or various sensors. Data obtained from the road weather stations can be displayed on variable message signs and boards, and stations can also be used to control the variable speed limit signs.

Road weather stations measure road weather conditions all year round (365/24). Processed data is available for wider public at  https://tik.teeilm.ee/en. Data is transmitted as soon as the new set of data is prepared (CDMA, GPRS). This is especially important in rapidly changing weather conditions.