Highway crews across the Commonwealth are searching for dangerous highway guardrails with an alleged design flaw. The guardrail head, manufactured by Trinity Industries, has been known to impale colliding cars rather than absorb the impact of the accident.

The Washington Post reports that road crews from both Maryland and Virginia have taken to the highways to look for the flawed model. Though crews have a rough estimate of how many of the guardrail heads to look for, they don’t have exact locations for the rails and must check every road. Virginia officials say they will replace any of the malfunctioning ET-Plus guardrail heads they find. Maryland says they will make a decision after determining just how many are on the roads.

Meanwhile, Trinity Industries is conducting new safety tests to prove their guardrail heads are safe for our nation’s roads. In light of the ongoing investigation, the guardrails have been pulled from the approved materials list from nearly thirty states.

The alleged malfunction seems to stem from a 2005 redesign that reportedly saved Trinity Industries $2 per guardrail head. The slight design change went unreported to federal regulators who had only initially approved the original guardrail design. Since an ABC Investigates story about the issue, the Federal Highway Administration has ordered additional crash tests of the product.

The malfunctioning guardrail head is said to have caused five deaths and several more injuries across the country. As the investigation continues, more stories of the guardrail’s impact in crashes will likely come out.

Seriously Injured in an Accident Involving a Guardrail?

Our Guardrail Injury Lawyers are currently investigating serious and fatal guardrail accidents related to this untested guardrail design. If you or a loved one were injured in an accident with a guardrail, contact our attorneys to discuss your legal options. We offer a free, no obligation, case evaluation – Get Help Now 877-544-5323