US highway regulator urges standards revamp after guardrail review

San Francisco

HIGHWAY guardrail systems in the US made by Trinity Industries Inc and Road Systems Inc have "safety performance issues" in some real-world crash scenarios, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) said last Friday as it urged a national overhaul of standards to better protect American drivers.

The regulator released a report citing "performance limitations" of five guardrail products, three by Trinity and two by Road Systems. The agency found the models experienced performance shortcomings in side impacts and shallow-angle collisions with the guardrail's end, sometimes resulting in penetration of the vehicle.

Trinity has faced scrutiny over the past year after a jury faulted it for not disclosing changes to its ET-Plus guardrail system about a decade ago. In June, the federal judg…