Did You Know Michigan Cable Barriers Could Do This?

You've probably noticed the cable barriers set up in the median of highways across Michigan.

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I've always wondered why the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) installed them, because whenever I've seen a vehicle that has lost control and crashed into these barriers, it appears to cause significant damage to the vehicle.

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Turns out there are several great reasons for those cable barriers in Michigan medians, the most important reason has got to saving lives.

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Wood TV talked to Van Buren County Sheriff Daniel Abbott who said the cable barriers have prevented head-on crashes, but also have drawbacks.

“Simple slide-offs, however, do turn into (property damage accidents) now, where that’s causing damage to the vehicles, so there’s pros and cons.I used to personally actually go out and police crashes where people go through the median and hit vehicles head-on. We don’t get that now. Now the cable barriers are doing their job, the only other drawback is that it takes more time for deputies to find a cut-through path when they spot a speeding driver in the opposite lane."

Did You Know Michigan Cable Barriers Could Did This?

The cable barriers were introduced in Michigan about 15 years ago and have helped prevent many deadly head on collisions caused by vehicles going across the highway.

Nick Schirripa with MDOT told Wood TV that the department has spent $1.5 million in the last five years on system repairs. Most of that cost comes from replacing posts.

“We’ve only replaced about 300 feet of cable in the last five years. Posts, on the other hand, we’ve replaced thousands, but those are designed to be breakaway. That was the way they were designed.

I'm hoping I'm not the only person in Michigan who didn't realize that the posts are actually designed to break away.

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When you compare the cost of those breakaway posts to what it would cost if they didn't prevent a head-on collision, you're easily looking at a few thousand dollars in damage and repairs compared to the potential millions of injuries and fatalities from such collisions.