Chapter I

Introduction (The Problem and Its Background)

An Introduction and a Review of Related Literature and Studies

Road safety is very important when planning highways. The use of various equipment

may help control the traffic flow and helps reduce severity of vehicular crashes. One of these

equipments are Highway Barriers. These Highway Barriers or Traffic Barriers keep vehicles

within their roadway and prevent them from colliding with dangerous obstacles such as boulders,

sign supports, trees, bridge abutments, buildings, walls, and large storm drains, or from

traversing steep (non-recoverable) slopes or entering deep water. Highway Barriers can be

flexible, semi-rigid or rigid. These depends on the materials used in a barrier and its functions.

However, types of roads and traffic flows could also affects the use of barriers regarding

to the safety of the motorists. Factors like number of vehicles passing, sizes of the vehicles and

number of accidents occurring in roads could also affect its use. Choosing the right and

appropriate highway barriers help occurring accidents to lessen and/or avoided. Highway barriers

are associated with a forgiving road environment (AASHTO, 2011; CEDR, 2012) as roadside

devices that contribute to a reduction in the occurrence and/or severity of single-vehicle crashes,

(Gitelman, Doveh, and Hakkert, 2018). In the Philippines, a total of 94 reports of barrier-related

accidents were recorded in 2011, ranking second in object collision incidents in Metro Manila,

(Baliton, Caballero, Rivera, and Custodio, 2017). According to the Metro Manila Accident

Report and Analysis System by the MMDA, barrier-related collisions make up 30.62% of the

total recorded accidents with declared category.

 Use of innovative types of barriers can also be helpful. These barriers should have the

characteristic to reduce the impact that the barrier and the vehicle may experience. One great

example of these innovations is the rolling barriers. The Rolling Barriers are the barriers that

absorbs impact energy and converts that impact energy into rotational energy and directs the

vehicle forward rather that potentially breaking through an immovable barrier, (Farhan, Anas,

and Azeem, 2018).

Highway barriers can be also used to separate two lanes to avoid vehicles to counter

flowing the wrong lane. In highway roads, opposite lanes must be separated by concrete road divider

barriers. Concrete barriers are necessary for preventing vehicles from entering the opposite lane, (Ren

and Vesenjak, 2005). Vehicles that crosses into opposite lines can cause serious accidents. With the help of highway

barriers, motorists will avoid counter flowing and can reduce and/or avoid accidents. It’ll also help control traffic flows

and avoid congestion in highways.

Materials in making these highway barriers are also an important factor, so that it can withstand any impacts it

may experience. Experimental impact tests have been established in several studies that have used full-

scale vehicle tests to test the ability of concrete barriers to withstand impact loads exerted on them by

collisions with vehicle, (Consolazio et al. ,2003) and (Bambach et al. ,2010). Laboratory models have

been used in other studies to test impact loads, (Gabauer et al. ,2010).

Comparing various highway barriers can be associated in many factors surrounding it. Looking into it, we’ve

realized that these factors are complicated and mostly technical. As we’ve observed, vehicular accidents are mostly

prevented because of highway barriers. But sometime highway barriers can be also a cause of road accidents. Most of

the time, choosing the wrong type of highway barriers were link to these accidents. Factors affecting these maybe

because of the effectiveness of the barrier, visual appearance, stiffness, the material used, or how regular the barriers
were maintained against the passage of time. There are multiple incidents of traffic barrier collision-

related accidents due to poor visibility conditions and poor design of the barriers as stated by the

motorists (Carlos, 2014 & Frialde, 2016). Number of vehicles, condition of highway roads, and location can

also be a factor of choosing the right and appropriate highway barrier. According to an article in Manila

Standard, 2.5 million vehicles are registered in the Philippines as of the year 2015 (Zurbano,

2015).

As we knew, highway barriers can also be an instrument to lessen and/or avoid congestion in traffic flow in

many public roads in our country. With the increasing number of registered vehicles, traffic congestion

has become a major issue in Metro Manila. In order to control the traffic flow, road barriers are

deployed on major roads. We’ve also considering safety of the traffic flow after the barriers are installed. Since

highway barriers should reduce the impact that is about to experience after the crash, right selection of type of highway

barrier can satisfy this scenario. Not just the safety of the motorist, but anything around it.

Theoretical Framework

The study uses the input-process-output, whereas the input of the study that the researchers aim to evaluate

and compare are the highway barriers be described in terms of highway size, location, vehicle passing and frequency of

accidents. The process is gathering of data thru questionnaires. And the output of the study is improvement the

highway barrier servives.

Statement of the Problem

This study is conducted to compare various Highway Barriers and choosing the appropriate Highway Barrier.

It should answer the following questions:

1.) How can the different Highway Barriers be described in terms of:
 1.1. Vehicles passing

1.2. Width

1.3. Location

1.4. Frequency of accidents

1.5. Counter-flowing of vehicles

2.) What type of Highway Barrier can be used with respect to:

2.1.Number of Vehicles Passing

2.2.Width of the Highway Road

2.3.Location

3.) What Highway Barrier is the most economical in terms of:

3.1 Construction

3.2 Maintenance cost

Hypotheses

This study is all about the evaluation of various Highway Barriers to use on roads. We

expect to know the what highway barrier is the most effective to use accordingly to numbers of

vehicles passing, width of the highway road, and location. We also need to classify the more

economical highway barrier. In our own observation, the more commonly used highway barriers

will govern than the others. We’ve also observed that the more economical materials used in

barriers would give us the more economical highway barrier.

Scope and Limitations

Since this study is to about evaluation of highway barriers, this is only will be set to

conduct on those roads that is classified as “highway.” Also, it must be conducted on highways

without any existing highway barriers. We need opinions about in this study, so only residents in

locations where the study is to be conducted are needed. And since this study also needed more

technical opinions, only professionals related to the field of civil engineering are more useful.

Definition of Terms

Traffic barriers - keep vehicles within their roadway and prevent them from colliding with

dangerous obstacles such as boulders, sign supports, trees, bridge abutments, buildings, walls,

and large storm drains, or from traversing steep slopes or entering deep water.

Roadside barriers - are used to protect traffic from roadside obstacles or hazards, such as slopes

steep enough to cause rollover crashes, fixed objects like bridge piers, and bodies of water.

Roadside barriers can also be used with medians, to prevent vehicles from colliding with hazards

within the median.

Median barriers - are used to prevent vehicles from crossing over a median and striking an

oncoming vehicle in a head-on crash. Unlike roadside barriers, they must be designed to be

struck from either side.

Flexible barriers - include cable barriers and weak post corrugated guide rail systems. These are

referred to as flexible barriers because they will deflect 1.6 to 2.6 m (5.2 to 8.5 ft) when struck

by a typical passenger car or light truck. Impact energy is dissipated through tension in the rail
elements, deformation of the rail elements, posts, soil and vehicle bodywork, and friction

between the rail and vehicle.

Semi-rigid barriers - include box beam guide rail, heavy post blocked out corrugated guide rail

and thrie-beam guide rail. Thrie-beam is similar to corrugated rail, but it has three ridges instead

of two. They deflect 3 to 6 feet (0.91 to 1.83 m): more than rigid barriers, but less than flexible

barriers. Impact energy is dissipated through deformation of the rail elements, posts, soil and

vehicle bodywork, and friction between the rail and vehicle.

Rigid barriers - are usually constructed of reinforced concrete. A permanent concrete barrier

will only deflect a negligible amount when struck by a vehicle. Instead, the shape of a concrete

barrier is designed to redirect a vehicle into a path parallel to the barrier. This means they can be

used to protect traffic from hazards very close behind the barrier, and generally require very little

maintenance. Impact energy is dissipated through redirection and deformation of the vehicle

itself.

AASHTO – American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

MMDA – Metro Manila Development Authority.

DPWH – Department of Public Works and Highways.