AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In an effort to enhance safety while reducing short-term traffic congestion in active work zones and at emergency scenes, the Texas Department of Transportation and Mobile Barriers LLC are bringing additional mobile barriers to Texas roadways.
Highly mobile, fully integrated and designed for rapid deployment, Mobile Barriers MBT-1 has received numerous awards and international acclaim for improving worker safety while reducing the number of roadside vehicles, lane closures and time needed to return roadways to their normal operating capacity.
“Under prior practices, it was often not practical to set up protection and separate the workers and traveling public,” said Kevin Groeneweg, CEO of Mobile Barriers. “To the extent there were only cones separating the two, there were more distractions which all too often leads to slowing and accidents. To compensate for dangers, crews often brought out extra trucks and/or took extra lanes (''buffer lanes''). Mobile Barriers MBT-1 allows users to streamline the entire process. It simply pulls in place and crews can go to work. Later, it allows users to quickly reopen the road for rush hour – before most people even realize we were there.”
“Safety is our top priority and with these barriers, our workers are surrounded by a mobile, protective environment that allows them to get the job done more quickly and safely than would be possible with just cones,” said John Barton, TxDOT Deputy Executive Director. “There’s no better way to reduce work zone accidents and improve conditions for everyone than to safely complete the work as quickly as possible and reopen the roadway to normal traffic flow.”
Considered a “game-changer” among safety and construction experts, the MBT-1 barriers are mobilized using standard tractor-trailer trucks. After arriving on site, the barriers are positioned as needed and shield roadside workers from passing traffic. If needed, the barriers can be pulled along the roadway in incremental lengths until work is completed. In some cases, the mobile MBT-1 barrier has enabled crews to do in one night what had otherwise taken three to five, with greater safety and less time lost for setup and removal.
TxDOT acquired its first MBT-1 barrier last fall and recently ordered six more. For additional information, see www.mobilebarriers.com.
