Kansas rider alert

Kansas DOT is considering installing cable barriers on divided highways.

These things virtually guarantee certain death for any motorcyclist who is unlucky and hits one. Now is the time to contact your local DOT and voice your objection, and calling your local state senator and representative will also help. We have these in Missouri, I do not want to see them in Kansas.

Rod

Good luck;

I've been seeing them crop up here in Tennessee. Its a cost cutting measure. There is no consideration given to a hapless motorcyclist.

median cables

I take it that you are referring to the median cables. They were installed in median on 4 lane interstates to prevent motorist from crossing the median into the oncoming lane. Deaths due to such accidents are down in Mo.

I am unaware of incidence of motorcyclists accidents in median on interstates. Since we tend to avoid the superslabs I expect it to be few. Few enough relative to the life-saving of cages crashing head on that I would not encourage not putting in the cables as a motorcyclist.

drolnz said:

Since we tend to avoid the superslabs I expect it to be few. Few enough relative to the life-saving of cages crashing head on that I would not encourage not putting in the cables as a motorcyclist.

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Who is "we". I ride highways all the time. IMHO the cables are not OK. Make the auto drivers stay awake and off their cell phones. I have just as much right to survive as everyone else does.
aaaaaaa

Are you really all that better off hitting Armco? Once the decision is made to separate the lanes by some physical barrier, we have five choices:

Distance - but a couple hundred feet between opposite lanes of travel is not always possible and is never a retrofit solution.

Built-up median - doubles drainage issues and gives a bike a launch ramp into the opposite lanes. Not always possible due to space and also not a viable retrofit fix.

Concrete barriers - may have similar drainage issues, costs a whole lot more than other barriers and is probably not all that great for bikers anyway.

Armco (guard rails) can be retrofitted in fairly tight confines but, given the choice, one of the two retrofit alternatives I do not want to hit unless they are double layered (costs lots more) to keep me from hitting the posts underneath them and built high enough not to fly over.

Cable barriers also fit into tight spaces, retrofit easily, and present unusual dangers to cyclists - but compared to the two other retrofit methods, I see no clear advantages or dangers to them. Maybe you want to lobby for concrete ...