The report describes the development of two new end treatments for W-beam guardrails. The first design, called the 'split rail end treatment,' consists of weakened W-beam segments, with slots cut along the length of the rail to reduce the buckling strength of the rail. The end of the rail is flared and anchored with standard 'breakaway-cable-terminal' hardware. The split rail design was crash tested and shown to be in compliance with nationally recognized impact performance standards. The second design, called the 'guardrail extruder terminal,' consists of a device that, when struck, causes the W-beam to be flattened and projected in front of the impacting vehicle and behind the guardrail. Vehicular energy is dissipated in the process, resulting in a uniform, controlled deceleration of the vehicle. The guardrail extruder terminal was crash tested and shown to be in compliance with nationally recognized impact performance standards.
Development of New Guardrail End Treatments
1988
258 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch