SAFER barrier
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The Steel and Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) barrier, sometimes called a soft wall, is a new technology found primarily on oval automobile race tracks and intended to make racing accidents safer. It was designed by a team of engineers led by Dean Sicking at the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The SAFER barrier consists of structural steel tubes welded together. Behind these tubes are bundles of closed-cell polystyrene foam, placed between the barrier and the concrete wall.
The theory behind the design is that the barrier absorbs a portion of the kinetic energy released when a race car makes contact with the wall. This energy is dissipated along a longer portion of the wall, instead of propelling the car back into traffic on the track.
An additional benefit of the SAFER barrier is that it reduces damage to the car itself, thereby reducing repair costs.
The SAFER system was developed by engineers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln starting in 1998, sponsored by the Indy Racing League and later NASCAR. It was first installed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2002, in time for the Indianapolis 500. Most oval speedways in the United States have since installed the system.
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