Wire Safety Barriers - Look what they do to low cars!

[xbgs351]

If it wasn't for the roll cage I hate to think what would have happened to the driver. He would have been decapitated at the minimum.

[sfr rob]

well, thats what you get when your driving a car made of fiber glass and your sitting that low in the damn thing.
Those wire barriers have saved MANY lives on the M1 here in Melbourne already.

[mcnews]

Originally Posted by sfr rob

Those wire barriers have saved MANY lives on the M1 here in Melbourne already.

YOu honestly believe that?

[Falcon Coupe]

I have never been a fan of them, replace the car with a motorcycle... :

It all comes down to money i guess.

[sfr rob]

Originally Posted by Falcon Coupe

I have never been a fan of them, replace the car with a motorcycle... :

It all comes down to money i guess.

yeah, ouch!

[paule11]

That would have been terrifying have you got any before pictures of the corvette?
Does anyone know how fast it was going when it hit

[xbgs351]

Originally Posted by paule11

That would have been terrifying have you got any before pictures of the corvette?
Does anyone know how fast it was going when it hit

[R0BD0G]

Originally Posted by xbgs351

looks better now...h8 the lights...and the front

[Walkinshaw]

for 4wheeled vehicles they are a FAR better barrier restraint than armco etc, however, yes our 2 wheeled friends....well ouch.

[troppobob]

The location of this crash appears to be on the competitin stage of Targa Tas. known as the Sidlings and is between Scotsdale and St Helens in NE Tas. It would be reasonable to assume the driver was going as hard as he dared and from the skidmarks he knew he was in trouble and locked up the front right about 30yds before the off. There is also quite a bit of rubber on the insde of the bend on the apex which indicates other competitors went through pretty quick. In this instance the wire barriers along here are usefull to stop wayward vehicles going over big drops and into the trees and are the lesser of the evils.

[Elks]

Cheap & effective in normal situations. They have stopped many a car crossing in oncoming traffic in Melb. (Or did the speed cameras do that)

Dont go there in an MG or similar and for motorcyclists well they are just a shredder.

[xbgs351]

My mate and I came across this accident on one of the stages of this years Targa Tasmania. I can't remember the stages name, but it was over towards the West of the state. I seem to recall that it was the same stage that Eric Bana crashed. A shock absorber on the Corvette had failed, which lead to the crash.

What really got me was how close the occupants of the car came to getting chopped into pieces. The top wire passed right over the bonnet and the second wire passed over the motor. There are plenty of other cars around in Australia that have just as low of a bonnet as a Corvette, but don't have a roll cage to stop the wire. Just think what might happen to the occupants of sports cars such as an MX5 in a similar sort of accident.

[AC/DC]

I think I would prefer that than the 400m drop ......

AC/DC

[prydey]

its not a money saving device, its a safety issue and far better than a solid crash barrier. had there been a guard rail instead none of the energy of the impact would've been absorbed by the railing and the occupants of the car may not have been able to get out and walk around.

the liklihood of decapitation looks pretty slim to me as the 'a' pillar is untouched. road cars are not made of carbon fibre so cannot really draw comparisons.

as for motorbikes, wouldn't matter what barrier was there if your going off its going to hurt.

[xbgs351]

Originally Posted by prydey

its not a money saving device, its a safety issue and far better than a solid crash barrier. had there been a guard rail instead none of the energy of the impact would've been absorbed by the railing and the occupants of the car may not have been able to get out and walk around.

the liklihood of decapitation looks pretty slim to me as the 'a' pillar is untouched. road cars are not made of carbon fibre so cannot really draw comparisons.

as for motorbikes, wouldn't matter what barrier was there if your going off its going to hurt.

The A-pillar didn't look untouched to me. The wire pushed the glass up against the roll cage. The lower wire also looked to have cut all the way through to the roll cage.

[Elks]

Originally Posted by prydey

as for motorbikes, wouldn't matter what barrier was there if your going off its going to hurt.

You're abosolutey right.

The thrill of motorcycling.....:newangel:

[Pedro]

Originally Posted by prydey

its not a money saving device, its a safety issue and far better than a solid crash barrier. had there been a guard rail instead none of the energy of the impact would've been absorbed by the railing and the occupants of the car may not have been able to get out and walk around. ....

First you mention solid crash barrier and then you move to guard rail and claim none of the energy would have been absorbed.

I don't know to what guard rail you refer but Armco guard rails do absorb energy and have been proven to do so.

The wire fence in the picture seems to be some cheap Tasmanian solution I've never seen before. If the situation arose, I'd certainly prefer to hit an Armco barrier than that wire mangler.

[mcnews]

Originally Posted by prydey

its not a money saving device, its a safety issue and far better than a solid crash barrier. had there been a guard rail instead none of the energy of the impact would've been absorbed by the railing and the occupants of the car may not have been able to get out and walk around.

the liklihood of decapitation looks pretty slim to me as the 'a' pillar is untouched. road cars are not made of carbon fibre so cannot really draw comparisons.

as for motorbikes, wouldn't matter what barrier was there if your going off its going to hurt.

A solid barrier would generally involve much slower decleration as the vehicle would have slid along it somewhat rather than being grabbed violently by the wire barriers.

As for motorbikes, solid barriers are much preferable, sliding along something is generally quite fine if you are wearing protective gear. Getting your limbs torn off generally isn't quite fine at all.

The EU is in the process of banning wire rope barriers altogether and many countries have done so already. I honestly can't see how any remotely intelligent person can envisage them being a good idea.

[Keepleft]

Mcnews scribbled:-

A solid barrier would generally involve much slower decleration as the vehicle would have slid along it somewhat rather than being grabbed violently by the wire barriers.

Ehh what???

You know the dynamics of each and every crash for this barriers 'whole of road applications'???

Jersey - deflects - with much greater g-force a vehicle that impacts it, pure and simple. Traditional steel guardrail less so, but deflection is still greater than that of wire rope, and guardrail remains banned in some US states whilst wire-rope systems now begin to outnumber guardrail per miles installed.

For a motorist, an impact is wire-rope barrier is simply safer than the other two systems in use.

The EU is in the process of banning wire rope barriers altogether and many countries have done so already.

What you will see is the requirement for add-on lower facia. The wire rope manufacturers have it - but it is up to the respective highways agency to fund the extra add-ons.

I honestly can't see how any remotely intelligent person can envisage them being a good idea.

The reality is that wire rope barriers, particularly down the medians have saved numerous lives, you see some big impacts with these, and each with the potential of having run into oncoming traffic - through the grassy median or median scrub.

Whilst M/C's love Jersey, it will *NEVER* be 'the norm', it would kill more car and truck drivers through its non-giving nature (greater G) and by deflecting many impacting vehicles back into the path of other traffic, is ugly and not suited to the environment, so its on-road application is for critical 'spot' treatments only, where the median is so narrow that NO deflection can be allowed.

The balance will be modded wire-rope for critical points and modified guardrail.

We will not generally leave key freeway medians unbarriered, that is not appropriate, though 'some' M/C's have asked this.


At the end of the day, in balance, motorcycles represent some 2.2% of registrations, perhaps to be generous for a total 9% of all travel. Things must therefore be balanced.

[mcnews]

I have slid down a racetrack at over 150km/h and got up without a scratch.

It is roadside furniture that kills people. And any addition to roadside furniture in my mind is idiotic.

[Pedro]

[QUOTE=Keepleft
..... At the end of the day, in balance, motorcycles represent some 2.2% of registrations, perhaps to be generous for a total 9% of all travel. Things must therefore be balanced.[/QUOTE]


Unfortunately the statistics for motorcyclists are terrible. In Queensland it's reported that they represent 3% of registrations, but 30% of road fatalities.

Footnote: Allover, road fatalities in Queensland are up around 70 more than for the same period last year, so the Beattie government is going to install more speed cameras. Another demonstation that we are governed by inept imbeciles.

[myxr6]

They are not called the cheese cutter for nothing.

[ClevlndStemer]

honestly i don't think they're meant for race conditions or anything more than normal commuting traffic.

[Rodp]

A big gum tree looks like the alternative and man vs gum tree is a one sided competition. So what should have been there instead of a wire rail? They seem to absorb impact a lot better than a solid rail and a 2 wheeler would have been screwed either way.

[Auslandau]

By the pics I think its proof that they work! Solid barrier could have bounced off or over, no barrier would've said "bye bye". Agree, not good for MC's but there are plenty of others things to worry about for bikers.



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[XR Martin]

Steel guard rails both absorb and deflect a vehicles energy. If you look at the angle of him hitting the wire, on a conventional gaurd rail he would have glanced off it with only minor damage. Instead it got cut to pieces.

[Rodp]

Originally Posted by XR6 Martin

Steel guard rails both absorb and deflect a vehicles energy. If you look at the angle of him hitting the wire, on a conventional gaurd rail he would have glanced off it with only minor damage. Instead it got cut to pieces.

Then it all depends on the angle of impact. Consider the car glanced off the guard rail and then uncontrollably headed for the other side of the road into oncoming traffic...?

[ebxr8240]

Originally Posted by XR6 Martin

Steel guard rails both absorb and deflect a vehicles energy. If you look at the angle of him hitting the wire, on a conventional gaurd rail he would have glanced off it with only minor damage. Instead it got cut to pieces.

I think P.B would be alive if there was one of these on the outside of the corner he lost control...

[BTTB]

http://mraa.org.au/forum/modules/iss....php?pagenum=7

[woodsy109]

They are trialing plastic guard rails in Victoria at the moment I think on roads that are in high use by motorcycles.

Hopefully something like this is a better solution for both car and motorcycle drivers.