A new Australian-developed road safety barrier designed to protect roadside workers while removing personnel from high-risk crash zones has officially entered commercial service, with infrastructure services company Ventia becoming its first customer.
Developed by Queensland-based ProTx with support from advanced manufacturing and robotics centre ARM Hub, the Arresta100 was launched at a live demonstration event in Brisbane attended by road authorities, infrastructure operators and government representatives.
Ventia has committed to two Arresta100 units for its road operations fleet, with the barriers set to be deployed on the Transurban Hogan Road and Tunnel network in South East Queensland, pending approval from the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads.
The Arresta100 is a seven-metre, two-tonne barrier trailer that can be towed by a standard work ute and deployed within minutes. Unlike traditional truck-mounted attenuators, which require an operator to remain inside a vehicle positioned in the path of oncoming traffic, the new system removes workers from the crash zone entirely.
According to ARM Hub CEO and founder Professor Cori Stewart, roadside worksites remain a significant safety concern, with around 18 fatal crashes and 245 serious injuries recorded nationally each year. The risks are even greater for crews working in regional areas.
“Arresta is a world-first vehicle arrestor, designed and built in Queensland to protect the workers who maintain our roads,” Stewart said.
ARM Hub worked alongside ProTx founder John Ferguson during the product’s development, helping transition the Arresta100 from a proven prototype to commercial-scale production through improvements in manufacturing processes, facility design and robotic welding integration.
The barrier underwent seven formal crash tests before reaching market, including impacts involving a 2.2-tonne vehicle travelling at 100 km/h, demonstrating its ability to protect workers operating in live traffic environments.
Ventia Operations Manager for Road Operations Australia Barry Smith said the primary benefit of the system was straightforward.
“The biggest part for us is the safety benefit,” Smith said.
“Our guys are going out there in their truck-mounted attenuators and know that when everything goes wrong that they’re in the front line every day. This particular method means that we remove that driver out of the crash zone completely.”
Further deployments are planned across additional road, port and airport infrastructure sites as the technology is rolled out more broadly across Australia’s transport network.