Testing of State Roadside Safety Systems Volume IV: Appendix C - Crash Test and Evaluation of a Pennsylvania Transition Design (FHWA-RD-96)

The purpose of this study is to crash test and evaluate new or modified roadside safety hardware and, where necessary, redesign the devices to improve their impact performance. The three major areas addressed in this study are the impact performance of bridge railings, transitions from guardrails to bridge railings, and end treatments for guardrails and median barriers.|This report presents the results of a crash test on a transition design by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Transportation for use in transitioning from standard W-beam guardrail to an 813-mm (32-in) high concrete safety shaped bridge rail. The test involved a 2043 kg (4500-1b) passenger car impacting the transition at a nominal speed and angle of 96.5 km/h (60 mi/h) and 25 degrees. Results of the crash test indicated that, although the transition design technically met all evaluation criteria set forth in National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 230, the impact performance of this transition design is considered very marginal. It is recommended that the transition design be improved prior to actual field applications.|This volume is the fourth in a series of 14 volumes for the final report. The other volumes in the series are: Volume I - Technical Report; Volume II, Appendix A - Crash Testing and Evaluation of a Michigan Thrie-Beam Transition Design; Volume III, Appendix B - Development and Crash Testing of a Guardrail System for Low-Fill Culvert; Volume V, Appendix D - Crash Testing and Evaluation of a Washington, DC PL-1 Bridge Rail Design; Volume VI, Appendix E - Crash Testing and Evaluation of a Modified Breakaway Cable Terminal (BCT) Design; Volume VII, Appendix F - Crash Testing and Evaluation of a Minnesota Swing-Away Mail Box Support Design; Volume VIII, Appendix G - Crash Testing and Evaluation of a Single Slope Bridge Rail; Volume XI, Appendix H - Crash Testing and Evaluation of a NETC PL-2 Bridge Rail Design; Volume X, Appendix I - Crash Testing and Evaluation of a Mini-MELT Terminal for a W-Beam Weak-Post (G2) Guardrail System; Volume XI, Appendix J - Crash Testing and Evaluation of Existing Guardrail Systems; Volume XI, Appendix J Crash Testing and Evaluation of Existing Guardrail Systems; Volume XII, Appendix K - Crash Testing and Evaluation of the MELT Terminal; Volume XIII, Appendix L-Crash Testing and Evaluation of the Modified MELT Terminal; and Volume XIV, Appendix M - Laboratory and Pendulum Testing of a Modified Breakaway Wooden Post.