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Citation |
Ray MH, Michie JD, Hargrave M. Transp. Res. Rec. 1986; 1065: 19-31. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 1986, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences USA, Publisher SAGE Publishing) |
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DOI |
unavailable |
PMID |
unavailable |
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Abstract |
Since the early days of highway safety research the design of longitudinal traffic barriers has been greatly influenced by two basic assumptions about the mechanism of occupant injuries. First, it has been assumed that the severity of occupant injury is directly related to the intensity of vehicle collision accelerations in the first barrier collision. It has been thought that the risk of occupant injury would be decreased by developing roadside features that would prevent high values of vehicle acceleration. The second assumption has been that occupants of vehicles involved in multiple-impact accidents would be subjected to the highest risk of injury in the first collision. Because vehicle speed and kinetic energy are generally greatest in the initial collision, it has been reasoned that the most severe occupant trauma occurs during the first collision event. Recent research at Southwest Research Institute has indicated that ensuring a smooth redirection is a more effective means of improving occupant safety than trying to limit vehicle lateral accelerations. It was found that occupants are rarely injured severely in a collision with a longitudinal barrier that smoothly redirects the vehicle. In the light of these recent findings, many of the typical assumptions made in designing and evaluating highway safety hardware may not be as appropriate as was once thought. Data from sled tests, accident data analysis, and full-scale crash tests indicate that the likelihood of an occupant sustaining serious injury in a collision with a longitudinal barrier is quite low if the vehicle remains upright and is smoothly redirected. Language: en |
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Keywords |
HIGHWAY SYSTEMS; TRANSPORTATION - Accidents; RISK STUDIES |