Many bridges (at least in Massachusetts) have chain-link fences on either side. They all seem to exhibit a similar characteristic. The fence on one side is always straight, while the other fence is curved inward at the top. Is there an explanation for this?
Anyone care to take a stab?
Hmmm…NASCAR tracks have inward-curving fences around them…maybe it’s to hold a wreck in/down?
But why only on one side. . ?
Hi there Susu. Good question. Just to further back up Gunslinger, I remember being told that the curved fences at raceways were particularly designed to redirect errant wheels, which had a nasty habit of sailing into the crowd at about a thousand RPMs. My father recalls seeing a spectator try to catch a loose wheel back in the 1950s at Riverside, I think. It stripped off his clothes and burned him badly.
As for the bridge: is it the outside (water-side) fence that curves, while the fence between the lanes is straight? Or is it one side of the bridge has a curved fence while the other side of the bridge has a straight fence? That would be odd.
The bridges in question are not divided highways (not the ones I have noticed anyway) and they are not over water, they are over other roads (usually divided highways). The curved section of fence usually seems to be on the North side (cars traveling West), while the straight portion is on the South side. Again, I don’t know if this is true in all cases.
I understand the theory about keeping in debris, but why on only one side of the road? Do people traveling Eastward have less catastrophic accidents?
Is there a sidewalk on the side with the curved fence? I think curved fences are meant to keep pedestrians from throwing things onto the road/cars below.
Good question! I know this is true in one instance. I’ll check around and let you know.
Being a fellow Bay Stater, this same question has had me thinking for a while.
It seems like the only bridges I see this on are overpasses over divided highways (mainly on I-195, Rte 24 and Rte 79 I’ve seen it). Every time I’ve seen it (and remembered to look for that matter), there have always been power lines going over the highway on the side with the straight fence. Kind of like the MassHighway guys were thinking of the power company’s best interest in setting up a bucket truck over the fence.
So, next time you see it, look for the power lines that were running along side of the overpassing road. My experience has shown thats the side that the fence is straight, not curved.
I’m with mblackwell, they are on the side of the bridge that has the sidewalk. They are there to prevent people throwing or jumping is my guess.
I’ve seen them on many Bay State and other state’s roads.
They would like to put a curved one on both sides. On the side that does NOT have a sidewalk, it would overhand the road (and be hit by trucks); hence it is vertical.
LOL! Serves him right. That guy should have been nominated for a Darwin award if he actually tried to “catch” it and got “mortally wounded” in the process. Oh man, just when you think you heard it all.