Strength of Guardrail Post in Rock

Details

• Creators:
  Eggers, David W. ; Hirsch, T. J. ; Ross Jr, Hayes E.
• Corporate Creators:
  Texas Transportation Institute. Texas A&M University
• Corporate Contributors:
  Texas State Department of Highways and Public Transportation ; United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Highway Administration
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Backfill Soils Barriers (Roads) Clay Soils Guardrails Limestone Posts
• Publication/ Report Number:
  FHWA/TX-85/42 +343-1(Suppl.)
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Texas ; United States
• Edition:
  Supplement Report- September 1982 - August 1984
• Corporate Publisher:
  University of Texas at Austin. Center for Transportation Research
• Abstract:
  The Texas State Department of Highways and Public Transportation (TSDHPT) uses two types of guardrail posts: a circular wood post and a steel W6 x 8.5 post. The posts are embedded into soil and rock depending upon the site in which the guardrail system is to be constructed. This research study was concerned only with the wood post embedded in rock. When located in rocky terrain, the current plans and specifications require the wood post to be placed in a drilled hole in the rock in deep and backfilled with soil or concrete as required by the engineer. concrete is required, the guardrail system becomes expensive. The research study reported herein was conducted to determine whether a soil backfill would develop the required strength for the post to perform satisfactorily as a traffic barrier system. A series of static load tests was conducted on such posts using backfills of clay, sand, decayed limestone and concrete. The results of these tests indicate that the wood guardrail post embedded 18 in. in rock will perform satisfactorily whether backfilled with clay, sand, decayed limestone or concrete. The cohesion less soil (sand or decayed limestone in this case) is recommended because it is economical and easier to place or tamp around the post.
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  2-18-83-343
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:532ce44ddc67e5324b657a40f5a5ab629ba1b6e49ffd28396ca8136bc93e9a311c6d1e467e92cbe5a3e5836c172e9d60541fd333e29c886af04351176ee8e6a6
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/85882/dot_85882_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 862.70 KB ]