[Added_flavor]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

One has to wonder about the design and structure of the barrier. Designed, perhaps, to look ok, but without thought to what actually happens when it gets hit.

Your theory seems to be the most probable. However, I believe the barrier did it's job of stopping the car from hopping on to the other side of the road - which would have caused more casualties in all probability.

I would term it very unfortunate and freak that the car collided with the barrier at a joint and it pierced the car like that! But I do not understand how else can the authorities build a barrier that's hundreds of kilometers long!

[Cyrus_the_virus]

Originally Posted by Added_flavor

Your theory seems to be the most probable. However, I believe the barrier did it's job of stopping the car from hopping on to the other side of the road - which would have caused more casualties in all probability.

From what I have seen and understood from good old discovery shows 10yrs ago (today's shows are worthless) the primary job of a steel railing barrier is Not to stop the vehicle hopping to the other side but to cushion the impact. It is very clear from this accident that the barrier was not made with international standards in mind. There is no doubt that a design flaw exists. A railing barrier is supposed to save lives, not take them.

[Edmund]

This angers me, utter failure on an infrastructural level, especially on toll roads!

Has everyone failed to notice the barrier of the opposing lane?

Now while you might argue that it is collateral damage, I agree, however, for it to have broken off its mounts after most/all of the impact has been taken by the first guardrail is a distressing thought.

It illustrates the lack of functional value of these life saving features on our highways, infact the complete opposite of lifesaving in this case. Moreover, I have, on numerous accounts seen the leading edges of guardrails open ended, leadin me to believe that this one was too!

The Acceptable solutions:


More innovative solutions being used on EU highways:


Image credit to respective owners
Source:www.google.co.in

[the_skyliner]

Originally Posted by Edmund

This angers me, utter failure on an infrastructural level, especially on toll roads!

You are absolutely spot on! Yesterday evening I specially went on a drive to check these barriers. The design flaw is unbelievable to say the least.

At the joints there is a gap of 2 feet and the end of the railings are kept open just like that. Not even a simple cover or a fillet/radius to make it bend downwards or something like that so that such accidents are avoided.
I am very sure it won't cost much to just bend the ends in a way that they don't pierce the car in case of impact at joints.

Our infrastructure designs have very less consideration for safety and this is an ideal example of that.

Similar lack of safety measures on Mumbai-Bangalore highway costed four young lives when there car went through an OPEN gap of 15 feet between two bridges. No barriers, railings nothing.

Our country has no value of human life and that is a sad sad reality.
Hope our authorities wake up some day and start caring about the citizens.

[tazmaan]

Yesterdays TOI article mentioned the driver did not survive. This is one freak accident and our roads are not at all safe may it be medians, bridges with no barriers to prevent cars from falling in to the river, trucks with over sized loads, buses with no safe fire exits, speeding buses, bullying political envoys, ready to kill road rage and what not.

It feels like we are more probable to lose a limb or life on Indian roads than in a war. Only option left would be to drive tanks.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Added_flavor

Your theory seems to be the most probable. However, I believe the barrier did it's job of stopping the car from hopping on to the other side of the road - which would have caused more casualties in all probability.

I would term it very unfortunate and freak that the car collided with the barrier at a joint and it pierced the car like that! But I do not understand how else can the authorities build a barrier that's hundreds of kilometers long!

I don't understand either --- It may be that the steel-wire is a better idea.

Originally Posted by Cyrus_the_virus

From what I have seen and understood from good old discovery shows 10yrs ago (today's shows are worthless) the primary job of a steel railing barrier is Not to stop the vehicle hopping to the other side but to cushion the impact. It is very clear from this accident that the barrier was not made with international standards in mind. There is no doubt that a design flaw exists. A railing barrier is supposed to save lives, not take them.

The brief might have been to build a barrier, full safety might not have been considered. Is it likely that safety tests were ever done on the designs? Or the specification might have been good but implemented with lower-cost details.

To be fair, have we ever seen such an accident before? Maybe we can, on this one, say freak accident.

[GTO]

Gosh, pains me to think what the i20 driver must have gone through. Rest in peace, brother.

Moved some of the i20 accident posts into a new thread.

[Arch-Angel]

The pictures are very shocking to say the least. That is just sad. Rest in peace. I feel sad when one of us Indians loses his life on our roads, these are nothing more than a signal that someone needs to wake up and start thinking and act. By that someone i mean our government. When will the transport department begin to notice these glaring deficiencies and begin doing quality work to make our roads safer?

[phamilyman]

Are we going to just sit here and then let the outrage lie a natural death?

Or can we as Team-BHP have such a signature campaign to shame the MORTH and NHAI to sort out all such problems? Together with that, we can have an awareness thread - where TBHPians post photos of such unsafe barriers.

We at Team-BHP can create/publicise that list of grossly unsafe sections - to make *some* difference in the outside world. Any better ideas?

[Edmund]

Originally Posted by GTO

Gosh, pains me to think what the i20 driver must have gone through. Rest in peace, brother.

Moved some of the i20 accident posts into a new thread.

I know it was reported that he died on the way to the hospital, but I find that hard to believe after studying the pictures more closely, the puncture point in the glass and the trajectory of the guardrail indicate that he probably didn't even know what took him! Also the fact that it didn't stop there and continued to slice through the C pillar in the BIW.

What's even scarier is that this is possible even in a BMW! The glass being the achillies heel of any automobile, especially when faced with a cold rolled steel section railing!

[Arch-Angel]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

Are we going to just sit here and then let the outrage lie a natural death?

Or can we as Team-BHP have such a signature campaign to shame the MORTH and NHAI to sort out all such problems? Together with that, we can have an awareness thread - where TBHPians post photos of such unsafe barriers.

We at Team-BHP can create/publicise that list of grossly unsafe sections - to make *some* difference in the outside world. Any better ideas?

I have an idea, why not create waypoints or POIs on google maps and have some sort of shared map with such barriers we come across marked by each and every one of us whenever we come across them?

[Edmund]

@phamilyman & @Arch-Angel: With the impact the our community has, it's definitely a great initiative.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by Arch-Angel

I have an idea, why not create waypoints or POIs on google maps and have some sort of shared map with such barriers we come across marked by each and every one of us whenever we come across them?

I thought of it. Infact, I had put it in my post and edited it out at the last second.

Why?

This is India. Such badly designed railings exist at gadzillion places. Even assuming for a moment, our enthusiastic community puts things in - what will happen?

Information overload. Like the boy who cried wolf.

Except for outright hazards like the Pune bridge with the deadly-wrong diversion sign, we should not be adding such points.

Conceptually I'm in agreement though.

[W.A.G.7]

A horrible accident and an absolutely horrible way to die. I just wish the police or the road authorities or whoever is responsible for the roads keep the safety of the people in mind henceforth. Whatever is already done, is done; there is no point in speculating what had happened.

Originally Posted by phamilyman

Or can we as Team-BHP have such a signature campaign to shame the MORTH and NHAI to sort out all such problems?

How do we do this across India? Online signature campaign? A good idea, but how to implement it?

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by Soumyajit9

Holy God !!
That must be quite some speed of the car, for the guardrail to pierce through the entire car !!!
Looks absolutely fatal !! Awaiting further confirmed reports.

The guardrail has scraped the bonnet and has pierced through just the front and rear glasses. I don't think a lot of momentum is needed for that.

Worrying thing is the car model that has met with the accident. The i20 is notorious for its steering column issues. As an owner of a Hyundai i10 (whose steering col. does rattle every now then) , I sincerely hope the accident was caused by driver error rather than 'car error'.