Beckley Webcam – Robert C. Byrd Drive Traffic Views

The Beckley Webcam looks out over Robert C. Byrd Drive, the main commercial corridor of Beckley, West Virginia, from a camera on the lot of the Lewis Nissan dealership. Rows of parked cars fill the foreground, traffic runs along the multi-lane road beyond them, and a line of shopping plazas sits in front of a wooded ridge that closes off the horizon. WVNS 59News streams the camera as part of its StormTracker 59 weather camera network, so the feed is as useful for checking the sky and the road surface as it is for watching the town go about its day. A second tab switches to another 59News camera on the same road, at Pioneer Community Bank, where the drive sweeps past landscaped islands and more dealership lots toward the hills.

About Beckley and Robert C. Byrd Drive

Beckley is the county seat of Raleigh County in southern West Virginia. Alfred Beckley founded the town on April 4, 1838, and the 2020 census counted 17,286 residents. The city stands at 733 meters (2,405 feet) above sea level, and its old nicknames say a lot about its past and its position: the Smokeless Coal Capital, a nod to the coal that built the county, and the Gateway to Southern West Virginia. Interstates 64 and 77 both serve the city, along with US 19 and state routes 3, 10, 16 and 210.

Robert C. Byrd Drive carries WV 16 through the north side of Beckley, around the Skelton area, and it is where much of the city’s shopping, banking and car buying happens. The road meets Harper Road (WV 3) at one end of the commercial strip and passes Eisenhower Drive and the Bypass Plaza Shopping Center along the way. Lewis Nissan sits at 100 Appalachian Drive, just off the drive, and its lot gives the camera a raised view across the traffic lanes. The dealership’s own pylon sign stands at the left edge of the frame, and tall light poles rise from the lot between the cars.

The picture changes through the day in small, readable ways. Traffic on the drive rises and falls with the working day, delivery trucks and vans pull into the plazas across the road, and the cars on the lot shift as vehicles come and go. The ridge behind the stores is the steadiest feature in the shot, and it is also the best weather gauge: when low cloud or fog settles over town, the trees on the skyline fade out first.

Weather and Climate in Beckley

Beckley’s height above sea level keeps it on the cool side for the South. Its climate is classed as humid subtropical, bordering on oceanic and humid continental. January averages a high of about 5 C (41 F) and a low of about minus 4 C (24 F), and the city records roughly 142 centimeters (55.9 inches) of snow in an average year. That is a lot of snow for the southern United States, and in winter the camera often shows plowed lanes, slush along the curbs and snow lying on the parked cars before the lot crew brushes them off.

Summers are mild by the standards of the region. July averages a high of about 27 C (81 F) and a low of about 17 C (62 F), and the camera often catches tall cumulus clouds building over the ridge on warm afternoons. Annual precipitation is about 1,106 millimeters (43.5 inches), spread through the year, so wet roads show up in every season. Spring brings the first green to the wooded ridge, and in autumn the same slope can turn red, orange and brown. After dark the scene depends on the lot and street lighting, with headlights tracing the lanes of the drive.

Things to Do Near Beckley

The Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine is the city’s signature attraction, a preserved coal mine that runs daily tours underground and tells the story behind the Smokeless Coal Capital name. The Youth Museum of Southern West Virginia, which includes a planetarium, is a good stop with children. Tamarack Marketplace, built in 1996 as a showcase for Appalachian arts and crafts, gathers the work of regional artists and craftspeople under one roof.

Robert C. Byrd Drive itself is the practical stop for supplies, fuel and a meal, with its shopping centers, banks and dealerships lined up along WV 16. Follow the same route north and it leads toward Fayetteville, where 59News runs another camera at Tudor’s Biscuit World. The station also streams from its broadcast tower at Ghent, from Oakvale Road on Route 460 in Princeton, from the Monroe County Courthouse and 911 tower, and from the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, so the network gives a wide picture of weather across southern West Virginia.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

More live views from West Virginia and other towns where the road is part of the scene:

• Ghent Webcam
• Point Pleasant Webcam
• Polson Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the Beckley Webcam located?

The main camera is on the Lewis Nissan dealership lot at 100 Appalachian Drive, beside Robert C. Byrd Drive on the north side of Beckley, the county seat of Raleigh County in southern West Virginia. The second tab is another camera on the same road, at Pioneer Community Bank.

What can you see on the Beckley Webcam?

The dealership lot fills the foreground, with traffic on the multi-lane Robert C. Byrd Drive behind it, a row of shopping plazas across the road and a wooded ridge on the skyline. The Pioneer Community Bank tab shows the drive curving past landscaped islands and more car lots toward the hills.

Who operates the Beckley Webcam?

WVNS 59News streams both Beckley cameras on its YouTube channel as part of the StormTracker 59 weather camera network. Lewis Nissan and Pioneer Community Bank host the cameras on their properties.

What is the weather like in Beckley?

Beckley is cool for the South because of its elevation. January averages about 5 C (41 F) by day and minus 4 C (24 F) at night, while July averages about 27 C (81 F) by day and 17 C (62 F) at night.

How much snow does Beckley get?

Beckley averages about 142 centimeters (55.9 inches) of snow a year, and in winter the camera is a quick way to see whether the drive has been plowed.

How high is Beckley above sea level?

The city sits at 733 meters (2,405 feet), which helps explain its mild summers and snowy winters.

What road is Robert C. Byrd Drive in Beckley?

Robert C. Byrd Drive carries WV 16 through the north side of Beckley. It is lined with car dealerships, banks, restaurants and shopping centers, and it links up with Harper Road (WV 3) and Eisenhower Drive.

Are there other 59News cameras in southern West Virginia?

Yes. WVNS 59News also streams from its tower at Ghent, Tudor’s Biscuit World in Fayetteville, Oakvale Road in Princeton, two sites in Monroe County and the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine.

Source: WVNS 59News