Citation

Skelton RR. Highw. Res. Board bull. 1958; 185: 1-18.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1958, National Research Council (U.S.A.), Highway Research Board)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Multiflora rose hedges offer definite advantages as safety barriers for highways, as shown by a recent investigation conducted for the bureau of public roads. In a study of the effectiveness of a hedge of mature multiflora rose plants, a modern automobile was stopped by the planted mass gradually and without injury to the driver or damage to the vehicle. The paper briefly covers the results of the summer, and winter field tests, which were conducted to determine (1) the stopping distance beyond the crash point at various speeds of contact, (2) the movement and performance of the bushes and the test vehicle during the deceleration period, (3) the magnitude of deceleration, and (4) the resulting damage to the bushes and vehicle. The 14-year-old multiflora rose hedge used for testing was planted about 3 ft center- to-center in a single row. The hedge was continuous and averaged 10 ft in width and 9 ft in height. A paralleling earth road served as an approach test road. The uses of the adjoining land and the single row of bushes dictated the character of the approach and speed of each test. Nine crash tests were performed parallel to and on the axis of the hedge. Four tests were run on flat angles with the centerline of the hedge. The speed of the test car at contact for the twelve tests ranged from 22 to 50 mph. The test car was equipped with an electrically driven recording three-component accelerometer and a spring-wound single- component accelerometer. Three high-speed cameras were used. The test results indicate that many serious accidents could be prevented in the future if hedges of this variety were planted now in the median strips of divided highways.