Howard Street Webcam – Belfast Buses, Taxis and Traffic

The Howard Street Webcam is a traffic camera in the heart of Belfast, looking along one of the busiest streets in the city center, a short walk from City Hall. From its high mounting the camera looks down on a bus lane, several lanes of general traffic and the wide pavements on both sides. Double-decker buses, black hackney taxis and delivery vans fill the lanes on a weekday morning, and queues build and clear at the traffic lights at the bottom of the frame. Pedestrians cut across between offices and shops, and street trees line both kerbs. The picture is a still image rather than a video, but it refreshes every 10 seconds, so buses and taxis can be tracked from one frame to the next.

About Howard Street

Howard Street runs west from Donegall Square, the square that surrounds Belfast City Hall, to the junction where Great Victoria Street, Grosvenor Road and Fisherwick Place all meet. That makes it one of the main links between the civic core of the city and the roads heading west and south, and it carries a steady load of buses to and from the city center. The street also forms part of the northern edge of the Linen Quarter, the district bounded by Howard Street, Donegall Square South and May Street on one side, Great Victoria Street, Ormeau Avenue and Joy Street on the others.

The street has a darker past than its office frontages suggest. In the 19th century Howard Street was the site of a House of Correction, which carried the inscription “Within amend, without beware” over its front door. Today the western end is dominated by the Presbyterian Assembly Building of 1905, whose Gothic stonework and corner tower stand over the junction with Fisherwick Place and Great Victoria Street.

The camera belongs to TrafficWatchNI, the road information service of the Department for Infrastructure, which publishes more than 150 cameras across five regions of Northern Ireland, from Greater Belfast to the North West and the South West. Drivers use them to check the roads before they set out. Each frame carries its own date and time stamp, so you can see exactly how fresh the picture is. Belfast itself had a population of 352,390 in 2024.

Weather and Climate in Belfast

Belfast has a mild, damp maritime climate with few extremes. Met Office averages for 1991 to 2020 at the Newforge station, 40 meters (131 feet) above sea level, put the January high at 8.2 C (46.8 F) and the January low at 2.2 C (36 F). July is the warmest month, with average highs of 19.7 C (67.5 F) and lows of 11.6 C (52.9 F). Rain is the constant: the city averages 1,084 millimeters (42.7 inches) a year, spread across about 154 days, which is why the road surface on the camera so often looks wet and reflective even when the sky has cleared.

The seasons show clearly in this frame. In winter the city sits far enough north that the working day starts and ends in the dark, so morning and evening rush hours often run under street lights, with headlights and brake lights streaking across the lanes. Spring brings the trees along the pavements back into leaf. Summer evenings are long and bright, and the street stays busy well after offices close. Autumn is the wettest looking season on camera, with low cloud, fallen leaves and umbrellas along both pavements.

Things to Do Near Howard Street

Belfast City Hall stands at the eastern end of the street on Donegall Square, and it is the obvious first stop for anyone arriving in the city center. Turn south at the western end and you are on Great Victoria Street, home to two of the best loved buildings in Belfast. The Grand Opera House was built in 1894 and 1895 and opened its doors on 16 December 1895, and it remains the city’s big stage for touring shows. Close by, the Crown Liquor Saloon dates from 1885, and the National Trust has owned it since buying it in 1978 after a public campaign to save the old pub.

The Linen Quarter behind the street is worth a slow walk for its old warehouse buildings and side streets. On Bedford Street, the Ulster Hall was completed in 1862, a sign of how quickly Belfast was growing in the Victorian era, and it still hosts concerts. Great Victoria Street has been a rail gateway since its first terminus opened in 1848, and today Belfast Grand Central station sits a few minutes on foot from the junction at the end of Howard Street, so many visitors walk this way into town.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more views of Belfast, and of busy city streets elsewhere, try these cameras.

• Belfast Lough Webcam
• Notting Hill Gate Webcam
• Times Square Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Howard Street in Belfast?

Howard Street is in Belfast city center, Northern Ireland, in the United Kingdom. It runs from Donegall Square and City Hall west to the junction with Great Victoria Street, Grosvenor Road and Fisherwick Place, on the northern edge of the Linen Quarter.

What can you see on the Howard Street Webcam?

The camera looks along the street from above, taking in a bus lane, several lanes of traffic, a set of traffic lights and the pavements on both sides. Buses, black taxis, vans and cars fill the lanes, and pedestrians cross between the offices and shops.

How often does the Howard Street Webcam update?

It is a still image that refreshes every 10 seconds, not a video stream. The date and time printed on each frame shows when it was taken, so a glance tells you if the picture is current.

What is the weather like in Belfast?

Mild and often wet. January averages a high of 8.2 C (46.8 F) and July a high of 19.7 C (67.5 F), and rain falls on around 154 days a year, adding up to about 1,084 millimeters (42.7 inches).

Who runs the traffic cameras in Belfast?

The Department for Infrastructure runs them through TrafficWatchNI, its road information service. It publishes more than 150 cameras across Northern Ireland, grouped into Greater Belfast, the North East, the North West, the South East and the South West.

What is the Gothic building at the end of Howard Street?

That is the Presbyterian Assembly Building, completed in 1905. Its Gothic stonework and corner tower dominate the junction of Howard Street, Fisherwick Place, Great Victoria Street and Grosvenor Road.

How can I check traffic in Belfast city center before driving?

Traffic cameras like this one show the queues as they stand. Watch the lanes heading toward the lights here, then open neighboring cameras on TrafficWatchNI to follow the route you plan to take.

What is there to see near Howard Street?

Belfast City Hall is at the eastern end of the street. The Grand Opera House, the Crown Liquor Saloon and Belfast Grand Central station are all on or near Great Victoria Street, a few minutes on foot from the western end.

Source: TrafficWatchNI, Department for Infrastructure