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                Safety Eligibility Letter B-118
  
  **Hardware Type:**
            Longitudinal Barriers and Bridge Rails
                          **Code:**
            B-118
                          **Date:**
            04/22/2003
                          **Testing Criteria:**
            NCHRP 350
                          **Manufacturer:**
            Oregon DOT
                          **Device Description:**
            3-Tube Bridge Rail @TL-4
                          **View PDF:**
            b118.pdf (354.56 KB)
    
    United States Department of Transportation - Federal Highway AdministrationDOT Logo
MemorandumU.S. Department of Transportation**Federal Highway Administration**Subject:
INFORMATION: Acceptance of Oregon
3-Tube Bridge Rail
Date:
April 22, 2003From:
Michael S. Griffith/original
signed by Charles A. Aiken/ for

Acting
Director, Office of Safety Design
In Reply Refer to::
HSA-10/B-118To:
Mr. Bruce Johnson
FHWA Division Bridge Engineer
Salem, ORIn your April 18 memorandum to Mr. Richard Powers of my
staff, you requested formal acceptance of the Oregon Department of
Transportation 3-Tube Bridge Rail for use on the National Highway System
(NHS). This design was tested by the
Texas Transportation Institute to the National Cooperative Highway Research
Program (NCHRP) Report 350 test level 4 (TL-4) and documented in three separate reports, all dated
May 2000, entitled "NCHRP Report 350 Test 4-10 of the Oregon 3-Tube Bridge
Rail", "NCHRP Report 350 Test 4-11 of the Oregon 3-Tube Bridge Rail", and
"NCHRP Report 350 Test 4-12 of the Oregon 3-Tube Bridge Rail", respectively.
The Oregon 3-Tube Bridge Rail consists of three TS 178 x 102
x 6.4 tubes supported by W200 x 36 steel posts on 3-meter centers. The top rail is 1068 mm above the deck
surface, the middle rail is 820 mm above the deck and the lower rail is 496-mm
high. The lower two rails are blocked
out from the support posts with TS 178 x 76 x 6.4 steel tubes, each 165-mm
long. The top tube is installed with
the narrow side against the post so the traffic sides of the rail elements lie
in the same plane. The posts are
mounted on a 178-mm high curb with four 22.2-mm diameter A325 steel bolts. These and additional details are shown in
the attachment to this memorandum.
Based on staff review of the three tests that were conducted
and their recommendations, I agree that the Oregon 3-Tube Bridge Rail meets all
the evaluation criteria for an NCHRP Report 350 bridge rail at TL-4 and that it
can be used on the NHS when such use is selected by the contracting
authority. Although its crash performance
was exceptionally good, I did note that in test 4-11, there was localized
bridge deck damage when the two post bolts on the impact side of the rail
sheared off. The use of larger or
higher strength bolts would most likely minimize repair costs.
Attachment
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