At Rell's urging, state will share video with local first responders to accidents.

The state cameras watching Interstate 95 from Stamford through Branford have been used since their installation in the 1990s just to monitor traffic conditions. Local fire departments and ambulance services don't get the camera feeds, although they could shave lifesaving minutes off response times to accidents on the highway.

The Internet images from the cameras posted on the state Department of Transportation's Web site are of little help. Unlike the instant images transmitted by the cameras, the Internet pictures can be as much as five minutes old. Furthermore, the DOT sometimes blocks them.

Towns along I-95 have been asking for years for access to the cameras' live images. The DOT had contended the cost would be too high and that the use of federal aid to install the cameras might restrict sharing the video.

The towns had little recourse until the state planned to spend $40 million upgrading and replacing the cameras. Some of the towns threatened to oppose the upgrade if the state did not share access to the cameras.

At the suggestion of Gov. M. Jodi Rell, regional and DOT officials met recently in Bridgeport to discuss providing local emergency responders access to the live video from the I-95 cameras. The towns should have access to the camera feeds within months, according to the DOT.

In announcing the state would share the system with the towns "as quickly as possible," Rell noted that "in any emergency, every minute is critical." This instance of cooperation between state government and local towns will prove a lifesaver.