Plans for Crash-Tested Wood Bridge Railings for Concrete Decks

As part of a continuing cooperative research between the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility (MwRSF); the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL); and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), several crashworthy wood bridge railings and approach railing transitions have been adapted for use on concrete bridge decks. These railings meet testing and evaluation criteria outlined in National Cooperative Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350, Recommended Procedures for the Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway Features, and include a glued-laminated timber (glulam) rail, with and without a curb, at Test Level- 2 (TL-2), a glulam rail with curb at TL-4, and a glulam curb rail for low-volume roads at TL-1. In adapting the railings from a wood deck to a concrete deck, the critical consideration was railing attachment to the deck. A comparable connection was obtained by an analysis of maximum loads measured by field instrumentation during crash testing or by equating the ultimate capacity of connections used on the wood deck to those required for a concrete deck. For the convenience of the user, full drawing sets are provided in customary U.S. and S.I. units

Plans for Crash-Tested Wood Bridge Railings for Concrete Decks

As part of a continuing cooperative research between the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility (MwRSF); the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL); and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), several crashworthy wood bridge railings and approach railing transitions have been adapted for use on concrete bridge decks. These railings meet testing and evaluation criteria outlined in National Cooperative Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350, Recommended Procedures for the Safety Performance Evaluation of Highway Features, and include a glued-laminated timber (glulam) rail, with and without a curb, at Test Level- 2 (TL-2), a glulam rail with curb at TL-4, and a glulam curb rail for low-volume roads at TL-1. In adapting the railings from a wood deck to a concrete deck, the critical consideration was railing attachment to the deck. A comparable connection was obtained by an analysis of maximum loads measured by field instrumentation during crash testing or by equating the ultimate capacity of connections used on the wood deck to those required for a concrete deck. For the convenience of the user, full drawing sets are provided in customary U.S. and S.I. units

Plans for Crash-Tested Bridge Railings for Longitudinal Wood Decks

In the past decade, bridge railing design criteria have moved away from static-load design and have focused on full-scale crash testing as a more appropriate and reliable means of evaluating bridge railings. The five bridge railing plans presented reflect the results of a cooperative research project between the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility, University of Nebraska-Lincoln; the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboraotry; and the Federal Highway Administration. The project objective was to develop and crash test bridge railings and approach railing transitions for longitudinal wood bridge decks. The bridge railings were completed in accordance with AASHTO Performance Levell, Performance Level 2, and NCHRP Report 350 Test Level 4 (TL-4). Approach railings were tested or adapted from previous testing in accordance with NCHRP Report 230. Full drawing sets are provided in customary U.S. and SI units of measure. The testing procedures, results, and drawings have been approved by the Federal Highway Administration Federal-Aid and Design Office for use on Federal-aid highway projects

Plans for Crash-Tested Bridge Railings for Longitudinal Wood Decks on Low-Volume Roads

The plans for crashworthy bridge railings for low-volume roads were developed through a cooperative research program involving the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL); the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (MwRSF); and the Forest Service, National Forest System, Engineering. Three railings were developed and successfully tested in accordance with National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350 Test Level-1 requirements. The fourth system was developed for a lower test level based on criteria developed by the Forest Service for single-lane bridges on very low-volume roads. For the convenience of the user, full drawing sets are provided in customary U.S. and S.I. units

Plans for Crash-Tested Bridge Railings for Longitudinal Wood Decks on Low-Volume Roads

The plans for crashworthy bridge railings for low-volume roads were developed through a cooperative research program involving the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL); the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (MwRSF); and the Forest Service, National Forest System, Engineering. Three railings were developed and successfully tested in accordance with National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350 Test Level-1 requirements. The fourth system was developed for a lower test level based on criteria developed by the Forest Service for single-lane bridges on very low-volume roads. For the convenience of the user, full drawing sets are provided in customary U.S. and S.I. units

Plans for Crash-Tested Bridge Railings for Longitudinal Wood Decks

In the past decade, bridge railing design criteria have moved away from static-load design and have focused on full-scale crash testing as a more appropriate and reliable means of evaluating bridge railings. The five bridge railing plans presented reflect the results of a cooperative research project between the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility, University of Nebraska-Lincoln; the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboraotry; and the Federal Highway Administration. The project objective was to develop and crash test bridge railings and approach railing transitions for longitudinal wood bridge decks. The bridge railings were completed in accordance with AASHTO Performance Levell, Performance Level 2, and NCHRP Report 350 Test Level 4 (TL-4). Approach railings were tested or adapted from previous testing in accordance with NCHRP Report 230. Full drawing sets are provided in customary U.S. and SI units of measure. The testing procedures, results, and drawings have been approved by the Federal Highway Administration Federal-Aid and Design Office for use on Federal-aid highway projects