An Alaska’s News Source investigation into alleged safety issues surrounding the X-Lite guardrail found there are hundreds of these guardrails installed in Alaska. Some lawsuits claim the manufacturer knowingly withheld information about design defects.
Some lawsuits claim the manufacturer knowingly withheld information about design defects. For nearly six years,to expose what he calls “deadly dangers” associated with these guardrails. He claims his daughter died because her car crashed into an X-Lite, however, the X-Lite guardrail’s manufacturer maintains their product is safe.
“They just show that this system was extraordinarily unstable and very prone to spearing a vehicle,” Eimers said. Alaska’s News Source found up to 11 versions of X-Lite’s installation manual issued between 2011 and 2015. On the surface, they appear the same, with no indication they were revised. But early versions say nothing about placing a bolt through rails 3 and 4. Then, later versions tell installers they need to install a bolt through certain rails.
Eimers’ lawsuit claims Lindsay, “made more than a hundred secret modifications to the X-Lite” after it was approved for use on roadways, which violated federal criteria, according to Eimers’ lawsuit. Lindsay says they did submit the two “significant” modifications made to the X-Lite and their expert stated, “the FHWA did not expect manufacturers to notify them of...
In 2016, before Hannah’s crash, three people in Tennessee were killed in two separate accidents after their vehicles struck X-Lite guardrails. An engineer with Tennessee’s DOT, or TDOT, stated in both accidents, “The shear bolts did not shear.” “We don’t believe we ever got a satisfactory answer to the question that we had about, ‘how tight do you torque those bolts?’” said Degges. As a result, all X-Lites were removed from Tennessee’s roadways.