What are Jersey Barriers?

Jersey barriers are known as K-rail to the western US (California Department of Transportation came up with K-rail).  They are either concrete or plastic barrier walls used during highway construction to separate opposing lanes of traffic.  The barriers we sell are plastic water fill-able barriers.  They are easier to ship than concrete barriers because they weigh a lot less.

A typical jersey barrier is 32″ tall but lots are also 42″ tall.  The first picture to the left is a 42 x 72″ water fill-able barrier.  Jersey barriers were invented in New Jersey in the 1950’s at the Stevens Institute of Technology.  The main goal of the barrier is to prevent head on collisions from the other lane when a vehicle goes off course.

The official name for a 42″ tall barrier is an Ontario Tall Wall.  The Ministry of Transportation in Ontario, Canada is replacing guardrails these these taller-jersey barriers on some 400-series highways.

It is important to note that the first barrier pictured on the left is not approved for use on highways by the FHWA but the second barrier you see on the left is.  It’s called an MB350 barrier and is actually safer than a concrete barrier in a crash.  This barrier meets the TL3 compliance by FHWA when 33 barriers are interconnected in a row, and each barrier must be ballasted to equal 1,500lbs.

It’s also popular to use jersey barriers to provide some protection against possible terrorist attacks.  They have even been used in the G-20 summit to prevent protesters from getting in restricted territory.  We sell the MB350 here http://www.trans-supply.com/p-552-highway-jersey-barrier.aspx and the 42 x 72 (first one) here: http://www.trans-supply.com/p-378-42-x-72-jersey-style-lcd.aspx