Evaluation of Four Bolt Slip Base for Breakaway Luminaire Supports for Various Pole Configurations (TTI-618911, T4541-FC)

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Final Report Link: Evaluation of Four Bolt Slip Base for Breakaway Luminaire Supports for Various Pole Configurations


TTI Research Supervisor: 
James Kovar
Assistant Research Scientist
Texas A&M Transportation Institute
TAMU 3135
College Station, Texas 77843-3135
(979) 317-2680
[email protected]
  Pooled Fund Technical Representative:
Clint L. McCleery
Barrier and Attenuation Specialist
Traffic & Safety Operations
4501 South 2700 West
PO Box 143200
Taylorsville, UT 84129
(801) 712-8685
[email protected]

ABSTRACT

Luminaire poles are a vital aspect of our transportation system. Much work in recent years has been undertaken to evaluate luminaire poles to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH) evaluation criteriaOf this previous effort, most projects evaluated frangible transformer base supports; there was minimal research evaluating slip base connections for luminaire pole supports. Consequently, the Roadside Safety Pooled Fund prioritized an evaluation of common designs for luminaire pole slip base supports.

 

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate critical configurations of a non-proprietary four-bolt slip base luminaire support for MASH crashworthiness. This effort started with a literature review and a state survey, which was aimed at identifying commonly used designs of luminaire pole slip bases. With the results of the literature review and state survey, the research team selected a configuration for full-scale crash testing. The research team subsequently evaluated the luminaire pole and slip base supports with MASH crash testing. One of three evaluated systems successfully met MASH evaluation criteria. The results of this testing effort demonstrate the need for further research evaluating the crashworthiness of luminaire poles and their support structures. This report details the tasks performed by the research team.


Updated December 19, 2024