NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A bill that would require manufacturers of guardrails along Tennessee roads to undergo third-party testing is headed to Governor Bill Lee's desk for his signature.
The bill is known as the Hannah Eimers Memorial Tennessee Roadside Safety Hardware Act, named after the daughter of Stephen Eimers who died in a car crash in 2016. Instead of a guardrail collapsing and absorbing the impact, he said there have been instances where they acted like a spear and shot through a car during a crash.
He also pushed for the bill to be included in a federal infrastructure package, saying his 17-year-old daughter could still be alive if it had been a law sooner.
It says all guardrails and crash cushions on public roads will need to be tested according to standards established by the Federal Highway Administration before it is installed. Those tests will need to be conducted in a lab that has been accredited by the International Organization for Standardization, or other comparable standards.
The bill also specifies that the labs conducting the crash tests cannot be affiliated with guardrail manufacturers.
When that testing is done, manufacturers that want to install guardrails will need to attest, under penalty of perjury, that it was tested in accordance with these new rules. If manufacturers change the way their guardrails are made, they will also need to go through retesting.
If companies do not notify the government that they changed the way guardrails are made, they may face a fine of up to $100,000. If signed by Governor Bill Lee, the law will take effect on July 1, 2022.
The bill unanimously passed the Senate in mid-March.