IRDES: Forgiving Roadside Design Guideline

This circular is a record of a meeting hosted by the International Research Subcommittee of the Roadside Safety Design Committee in Milan, Italy, on July 17, 2012. At the 91st Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board in January 2012 in Washington, D.C., the Roadside Safety Design Committee decided to hold an additional subcommittee meeting on the day preceding the I-Crash Conference. This would be the first-ever meeting of the International Research Subcommittee in Europe. The I-Crash Conference attracts an audience with interests similar to those of the International Research Subcommittee. Subcommittee members could attend both functions, which were held at the same venue, the Passive Safety Laboratory of Politecnico di Milano, through the excellent efforts of Marco Anghileri. The meeting was organized by Mike Dreznes and Rod Troutbeck, cochairs of the subcommittee. One hundred and eighteen delegates from 15 countries attended the Milan meeting of the International Research Subcommittee; Appendix B lists the attendees. Presenters were asked to submit a summary of the presentations, which are included in this circular. The papers give a sense of what was discussed and should be useful for researchers and practitioners alike. Rod Troutbeck provided editorial guidance. The meeting was a great success, and the attendees affirmed interest in conducting a similar meeting annually outside of North America. Thanks go to the Roadside Safety Design Committee members—in particular to committee Chair Dick Albin; to the Politecnico di Milano—in particular, to Marco Anghileri; to all of the presenters; and finally to TRB Staff Representative Stephen Maher.