Big brother is watching Sturgis rallygoers.

Sturgis law enforcement and the South Dakota Department of Transportation have surveillance cameras placed at strategic locations throughout Sturgis.

Sturgis Police Chief Jim Bush said his department has had four to five cameras placed on light poles in the downtown area for several years.

"It makes it easier for us to see the movement of the people and the traffic," he said. "It gives us a heads up if we see something brewing. It helps us to be more proactive than reactive."

Law enforcement can watch the cameras at the dispatch center. Bush said he can't recall if the cameras have helped them solve any rally crimes.

"I don't know if we have gotten any stolen bikes back with them," he said.

The DOT has five cameras they can place throughout the Sturgis area during rally week to help with high-traffic areas.

Currently, there are DOT cameras mounted on light poles at Interstate 90 Exit 30, Exit 32 and at the intersection of Junction Avenue and Ballpark Road in Sturgis

The DOT's rally-traffic operation's epicenter is located in a corner of the DOT's Sturgis maintenance shop at 1100 Otter Road. It's there that regional traffic engineer Doug Kinniburgh and his crew monitor the live surveillance feeds and use remotes to modify the traffic lights and improve the traffic flow.

"We can physically take control of traffic signals," Kinniburgh said.

The DOT has been running the remote traffic operation for the past two years. Before that, they monitored rally traffic from a trailer near Exit 30. And instead of being able to modify the signal remotely, they would send a worker onto the highway to direct traffic.

"We had a few near misses. We did have a seasonal worker who got bumped into out there," Kinniburgh said. "It becomes a safety issue when they get out in the middle of the street to direct traffic. We now have the technology that we don't have to do that anymore."