Meet Median Man, the new superhero who is dedicated to educating Michigan motorists about the lifesaving benefits of hundreds of miles of new cable guardrail being installed on Michigan highways.

Median Man, who is made of strong steel cable barriers, is featured in radio spots throughout the state. You can listen here:
:30-second spot

Median cable guardrails keep vehicles from going through medians and crashing into on-coming traffic.

Median cable guardrail consists of steel wire ropes mounted on posts. It is designed to prevent a vehicle from leaving the roadway and striking an object which would create a potentially more dangerous situation. They function by capturing or redirecting vehicles while absorbing impact energy.

Resources
Additional cable guardrail information: www.roadwaysafety.org.
MDOT Guardrail System Brochure
First Responder Flyer
MDOT's cable guardrail system helps save 10 lives in I-94 crash

This photo shows an example of how the median cable guardrail system was able to contain a semi-truck and trailer that lost control on the opposite lane of the highway. The cable guardrail system kept the semi from entering the oncoming lane of highway.

Median cable guardrail is saving lives every day. Cable guardrail is expected to reduce cross-median crashes by an estimated 90 percent. In contrast, concrete barriers are only about 60 percent effective. We expect to save at least 13 people and prevent 51 incapacitating injuries PER YEAR, once this three-year safety effort is complete.

Median barriers already are installed in other states such as South Carolina, Washington and Missouri. A relatively low-cost solution, cable barrier is about one-third the cost of steel guardrail, and only a quarter of the cost of concrete barrier. MDOT will invest more than $40 million total to install 280 miles of cable statewide in response to a 340-mile median crash analysis.