MPC Research Reports
Report Details

Title:	Impact Performance Testing of Roadway Safety and Security Barriers, Phase 2
Authors:	Misty L. Butler and Richard M. Gutkowski
University:	Colorado State University
Publication Date:	Oct 2005
Report #:	MPC-05-172
Project #:	MPC-234
TRID #:	01010904
Keywords:	barriers (roads), highway safety, impact tests, motor vehicles, performance, test facilities, vehicle trajectories

Abstract

A testing facility for temporary longitudinal barriers was constructed at Colorado State University's Engineering Research Center which allows manufacturer's the opportunity to test their safety barriers prior to full-scale federal testing. This facility enables manufacturers to subject their products to a simplified, yet standard test according to federal regulations at a much lower cost. This simplified test gives the manufacturers the likely performance of their product and makes any necessary improvements before subjecting their products to the federal tests. The test described in this report involved the testing of an "E-Z Barrier," a product of Safety Barriers Corporation of Colorado. The E-Z Barrier is a low-density polyethylene shell that is noted for being lightweight when empty and can easily be set up and filled with water and/or sand with less effort than placing heavy concrete barriers. The main objectives of the test were to ensure the facility was adequate and sound and to observe how closely the facility came to implementing the intended simplified vehicle impact testing procedures.

Related Reports

• [Final Report] Simplified Impact Testing of Traffic Barrier Systems, Phase 1