Development of a Mash Tl-2 Guardrail-to-Bridge Rail Transition Compatible with 31-Inch Guardrail
The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Design Division is in the process of developing new guardrail standards that comply with the AASHTO Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH). The new guardrail system will provide increased capacity and improved impact performance relative to the current design. A key feature of the new system is an increased in rail mounting height from 27 inches to 31 inches. TxDOT’s current TL-2 metal beam transition is 27 inches tall and is not compatible with the new 31 inch guardrail system. While the high-speed, nested thrie beam transition system meets MASH guidelines and is compatible with a 31-inch guardrail, it would be cost-prohibitive to use it on all roadways. The objective of this research was to develop a transition that is suitable for use on lower speed roadways, less expensive and complex than the current high-speed (i.e., TL-3) transition design, and is compatible with a 31-inch guardrail. A low-cost guardrail-to-bridge rail transition was successfully developed and tested under MASH Test Level 2 conditions. It is compatible with a 31-inch guardrail and can connect to rigid concrete bridge rails. It is considered suitable for implementation on roadways that have traffic conditions appropriate for the use of TL-2 safety hardware. Use of this system provides significant savings in material and installation cost compared to the high speed transition system.
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Corporate Authors:
Texas Transportation Institute
Texas A&M University System, 3135 TAMU
College Station, TX United States 77843-3135Texas Department of Transportation
Research and Technology Implementation Office, P.O. Box 5080
Austin, TX United States 78763-5080Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC United States 20590 -
Authors:
- Bligh, Roger P
- Arrington, Dusty R
- Menges, Wanda L
- Publication Date: 2011-12
Language
- English
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
- Edition: Test Report
- Features: Appendices; Figures; Photos; Tables;
- Pagination: 124p
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Bridge railings; Crash tests; Guardrail transition sections; Guardrails; Thrie beams
- Identifier Terms: AASHTO Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware
- Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Design; Highways; I24: Design of Bridges and Retaining Walls;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 01363017
- Record Type: Publication
- Report/Paper Numbers: FHWA/TX-12/9-1002-8, Test Report No. 9-1002-8
- Contract Numbers: Project 9-1002
- Files: NTL, TRIS, USDOT, STATEDOT
- Created Date: Feb 17 2012 8:31AM