Road Safety Barriers and the Safety of Road users – the Analysis of the Situation in Poland

Road safety barriers are a basic element of the road infrastructure aimed at improving the safety of road users. Design parameters and indications for assembly are strictly regulated by the GDDKiA (General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways) guidelines in accordance with the European standards. In Poland, the most commonly used barriers are thin-walled metal sheet barriers, rope barriers, and concrete ones. The types differ in terms of technical parameters and level of security they provide. One of the purposes of installing road safety barriers is to protect road users from hitting an obstacle in the vicinity of the road, and to protect people around the accident from the effects of an uncontrolled vehicle leaving the road. The effects of a collision caused by hitting a protective road barrier depend mainly on the type of the barrier and the vehicle. The authors made a detailed and interdisciplinary analysis of data on accidents resulting from hitting a road safety barrier, comparing them with information available in the literature, combining the technical aspects of the use of barriers with a medical description of the description of typical injuries.