Evaluation of Breakaway Lightpoles for Use in Highway Medians

Walton, N. E.; Hirsch, T. J.; Rowan, N. J.

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Evaluation of Breakaway Lightpoles for Use in Highway Medians

1972-05-01
By Walton, N. E. ; Hirsch, T. J. ; Rowan, N. J.

File Language:

English

Details

Creators:

Walton, N. E. ; Hirsch, T. J. ; Rowan, N. J.
Corporate Creators:

Texas Transportation Institute. Texas A&M University
Corporate Contributors:

Texas Highway Department ; United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Highway Administration
Subject/TRT Terms:

Attenuation (Physics) Breakaway Supports Evaluation Hazards Highways Luminaires Medians Street Lighting Traffic Lanes
Publication/ Report Number:

146-5
Resource Type:

Tech Report
Geographical Coverage:

United States ; Texas
Corporate Publisher:

Texas Transportation Institute. Texas A&M University
Abstract:

Crash tests were conducted to determine the impact behavior of median-mounted luminaire supports and secon4ary collisions of vehicles striking downed poles on a traffic lane. A relative hazard index was developed to describe the relative hazard created by the proximity and frequency of luminaire supports. It was concluded that a 20° impact by a 2900 lb. vehicle at 45 mph would not cause a pole to encroach on the opposing traffic lane if the median is 40 ft wide. A 4000 lb. vehicle impacting at 25° and 60 mph would cause a pole to encroach approximately 11 ft into the opposing lane. Under both conditions, the impacting vehicle would cross into the opposing lanes and may be more of a hazard than the poles themselves. A medium size vehicle impacting a downed pole within the traffic lane presents no more hazard than the original impact. From a relative hazard standpoint, median mounted luminaire systems produce less hazard than house-side systems for median widths of 30 ft or greater.
Format:

PDF
Funding:

2-8-68-146
Collection(s):

US Transportation Collection
Main Document Checksum:

urn:sha-512:d62ba1843a10c1776cd2d9b2999a57a1e31135f4f666464ce1af9573f15d8e637c3bf2b127c682aa90c65583479912bbbac9f96ba0d29eeb44fff7897f6e33ca
Download URL:

https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/85254/dot_85254_DS1.pdf
File Type:

[PDF - 3.25 MB ]

File Language:

English

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