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Road marking manufacturers have many innovative new products either currently being used on major highways or set to be made available within the next couple of years. Guy Woodford reports. Daan Roosegaarde, an artist, and Hans Goris, a manager at Dutch construction and infrastructure firm Heijmans, are developing intriguing new products for the road markings market. One innovation involves painting road markings with glow-in-the-dark paint.

German firm PASS+CO has developed a novel product that can be used as a transition between steel and concrete barriers. Called the FLEXTRA SR-C, this product meets the European H2 rating under the EN1317 and connects the firm’s own SUPER-RAIL H4b double barrier with concrete structures. This can be installed in an array of applications, such as at the entrance to tunnels or tolling areas, where there is a need for a transition from one type of barrier to another.

Spanish firm badennova is now offering a novel alternative to conventional speed bumps.

The Turkish Government has an extensive road-building programe - GÜLAY MALOKÇ provides an overview of the country's asphalt industry. Turkey covers an area approaching 800,000km2, of which about 97% is in Asia and 3% in Europe, while its population is close to 72 million. The country borders with Greece and Bulgaria on its European side, and Syria, Iraq, Iran, Armenia and Georgia on the Asian side. Commanding an important strategic position, Turkey controls the routes from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean

Taiwan-based Aplus Molds & Plastics is showing its new A+MP Plastic Guide Rail. The innovative, low-weight plastic design reduces purchase and transportation costs, while offering long working life. Different versions of the range are available to suit varying protection requirements and the products offer further safety benefits due to optional high conspicuity features. The Road Warning safety Plastic Guide Rail can be used on roads around the globe. This Plastic Guide Rail differs from conventional Jers

Pexco (Davidson Traffic Control Products) is offering the new City Post high-performance channeliser product. According to the firm, the “ultra high-performance” post features a sleek profile and quick “spin-in” deployment. The all-polyurethane post features quick rebound when impacted and is designed for deployment in high-speed, high-impact locations such as toll plazas and HOT lanes, as well as low-speed urban locations. Severe endurance testing at the Texas Transportation Institute resulted in all posts

Italian specialist INDUSTRY AMS has developed a range of modular redirective crash cushions. The firm’s Safety Modular Absorber (SMA) models are available in different specifications to suit varying applications. The company claims that its novel SMA crash cushions are the most compact absorbers available on the market and these units meet the European safety requirements of the EN 1317-3 standard.

Barrier selection criteria should pay close attention to risks for stretches of road as well as regulations. Roadways need to have barriers to provide passive protection for users and to reduce the risk of injury or death in the event of a vehicle leaving the roadway. A wide array of regulations and legislation covers the design and installation of barriers on Europe’s roads. However, there are still a number of loopholes for certain types of roadside protection and further agreement is required to close th