Jersey barrier
Overview
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
barrier employed to separate lanes of traffic
Traffic
Traffic on roads may consist of pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars and other conveyances, either singly or together, while using the public way for purposes of travel...
. It is designed to both minimize vehicle damage in cases of incidental contact while still preventing crossover in the case of head-on accidents.
Also utilized extensively to re-route traffic and protect pedestrians during highway
Highway
A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...
construction, such barriers are increasingly deployed in anti-terrorism roles as both quick fixes and semi-permanent protections against perceived landborne threats.
Jersey barriers are known colloquially by a variety of names in the U.S., including Jersey bumps and, in the western states, K-rail --a term borrowed from the California Department of Transportation
California Department of Transportation
The California Department of Transportation is a government department in the U.S. state of California. Its mission is to improve mobility across the state. It manages the state highway system and is actively involved with public transportation systems throughout the state...
specification for temporary concrete traffic barriers.
The Jersey barrier was developed at Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology is a technological university located on a campus in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA – founded in 1870 with an 1868 bequest from Edwin A. Stevens. It is known for its engineering, science, and technological management curricula.The institute has produced leading...
in Hoboken
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, under the direction of the New Jersey State Highway Department
New Jersey Department of Transportation
The New Jersey Department of Transportation is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey. It is headed by the Commissioner of Transportation...
to divide multiple lanes on a highway.
