AddGard® Pedestrian Barricade System By Remcon Plastics Accepted By Federal Highway Administration
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has accepted Remcon Plastic's AddGard Barricade System, calling it a "crashworthy traffic control device for use in work zones on the National Highway System."
"Now that laws which require barricades to meet the needs of blind pedestrians are starting to be enforced, we are excited to have AddGard receive federal approval," said Peter J. Connors, president of Remcon Plastics. AddGard complies with the safety and crashworthiness requirements of the FHWA and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 350.
AddGard was originally designed to aid blind or visually-handicapped pedestrians in navigating construction and maintenance zones. The barricade features continuous curbing specified by the new Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) to help protect blind pedestrians around hazardous work areas.
According to the FHWA acceptance letter, AddGard has been accepted as a Type I, Type II, Directional Barricade and Longitudinal Channelizer, which enables contractors and maintenance crews to meet the safety needs of pedestrians while protecting the occupants of vehicles.
Featuring interchangeable sign panels, AddGard is made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic. A variety of standard signs can be stored inside the injection molded unit, allowing for signs and "striping" to be changed quickly and easily at work zones. Each barricade weighs approximately 10 lbs (4.5 kg), is 36 inches tall by 40 inches wide and 1.25 inches deep (914 x 1016 x 32 mm), and can be folded for easy transport and compact storage. AddGards can be imprinted with corporate logos and are available in custom colors.
"AddGards have been used by maintenance staffs, utility companies, safety departments in manufacturing and construction environments, and at airports since the mid-90s. They have been used as a safety fence to cordon off escalators under repair and to keep people and pets away from electrical, plumbing and gas maintenance work areas," Connors said.