Citation

Bligh R, Sheikh N, Obu-Odeh A, Menges W. Accid. Reconstr. J. 2010; 20(4): 37-50.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, Accident Reconstruction Journal)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

As the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) plans for future expansion of the state’s highway network, interest in higher design speeds has been expressed as a means of promoting faster and more efficient travel and movement of goods within the state. Increased speeds (above 80mph) will place more demand on roadside safety features. This article describes a project that begins the process of developing roadside safety hardware suitable for use on high-speed highways. The impact conditions selected for the design, testing, and evaluation of this high-speed hardware include a speed of 85 mi/h and an angle of 25 degrees for barrier impacts. Two designs were selected for further evaluation through full-scale crash testing: an energy-absorbing bridge rail concept and a modified wood post thrie beam guardrail. This article presents the results of the full-scale crash testing of these designs. Tests were performed at the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) Proving Ground. For each test, the authors describe design and construction of the guardrail device, material specifications, the actual impact conditions, the test vehicle, weather conditions, test description, damage to test installation, vehicle damage, occupant risk factors, and structural adequacy of the guardrail device. Test vehicles were a 5000-lb, ½-ton, 4-door pickup truck (2002 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad-Cab) and a 2425-lb passenger car (2002 Kia Rio). The 85mph impact simulations of the energy-absorbing bridge rail predicted marginal performance for both the small car and pickup truck. Results showed a high vehicle roll angle during redirection, which indicated the possibility of vehicle instability and rollover. The modified wood post thrie beam guardrail did not contain and redirect the pickup truck; failure of the upstream anchorage permitted the vehicle to penetrate behind the guardrail. The authors conclude that both of these designs require modifications to achieve adequate performance before implementation can be addressed. Readers are referred to the full report (#0-6071-2) at http://tti.tamu.edu/research_areas/publications.htm?p_tid=4.