America’s many municipalities are abuzz with new street renovations and traffic control innovations. New methods of traffic calming are finally affordable and accessible even to smaller American towns. If you’re looking at overhauling your roads, choosing from the different traffic calming options can feel daunting.
One traffic calming device that’s absolutely exploding in popularity is the speed cushion or speed pillow. In this article, we will discuss the following key takeaways on why you should consider speed cushions for your town:
- Speed cushions calm normal traffic while letting emergency vehicles pass
- Different traffic calming devices serve different safety goals
- Traditional concrete and asphalt cushions are a pain to maintain
- RubberForm recycled rubber speed cushions are blessedly simple
How many different ways can I calm traffic?
There are many. Stop signs and traffic lights calm traffic. A regular police presence does too. Speed limits also calm traffic (though they can be ignored, and that’s when the police come back into play). Curves or chicanes in road design can naturally tend to slow most drivers down. But you need another option for when any of the above traffic calming techniques is insufficient.
Physical impediments like speed bumps, speed humps, speed cushions, and speed tables cannot be ignored. That’s their main advantage. A motorist who hits a speed bump at an unsafe speed will risk damage to their vehicle or loss of control.
What are speed cushions? What makes them different?
Speed bumps are short and steep. That makes them aggressive. They’re perfect for extreme traffic calming around pedestrian-heavy areas like schools and parks. They’ll slow cars down to 10 or even 5 miles per hour.
Speed humps are longer and less steep. They gently calm traffic to between 20-30 miles per hour, ideal for most residential streets. Speed tables are similarly gentle, but tend to span the entire road between sidewalks, serving as an elevated crosswalk that pedestrians can use. They increase pedestrian visibility and work well at high traffic intersections.
Speed cushions (also called road cushions) are special. They’re as gentle for passenger vehicles as speed humps or speed tables, but they have special cutouts on the sides that allow emergency vehicles to pass unhindered.
Normally, an ambulance, fire truck, or other large public vehicle would have to slow down just as much as anyone else would when they transit a speed bump, speed hump, or speed table. Particularly for ambulances carrying patients in critical condition, hitting a physical speed impediment hard could be harmful, even deadly.
Allowing those emergency vehicles to pass unimpeded is a game changer. Hospitals and important public thoroughfares that would have really had to weigh the pros and cons of traffic calming now have a great option to work with.
What kind of speed cushion should I get?
The earliest speed cushions or traffic cushions were made just like traditional speed bumps and speed humps: out of concrete or asphalt. This is comparatively cheap initially, though it is loud, disruptive, and messy to install. Concrete and asphalt requires seasonal maintenance, particularly in cold or wet regions, or it will crack and crumble even faster than it normally would.
No matter how well you maintain it, the concrete or asphalt will decay until it is essentially unusable. Then it will require demolition and cleanup before you can pour a new one or, if we can offer some advice, try something else.
Rubber Speed Cushions
Rubber-based speed cushions are a nicer-looking, longer-lasting alternative to asphalt. And we believe our RubberForm Recycled Speed Cushions are the absolute best in the world.
We start with a custom-made composite of 100% recycled American plastic and rubber. It’s light and strong, and surprisingly pliant, making it perfect for heavy traffic, inclement weather, and extreme temperatures. Our speed cushions won’t chip, crack, crumble, or corrode. And if you do somehow manage to break one, you’ve got nothing to worry about. Our cushions are fully modular. Call us for a replacement, pop the old part out, pop the new one in.
In fact, our speed cushions are so easy to install, anyone on your team could do it. You don’t need heavy equipment. You don’t need large crews. You won’t even need to close the full width of road to install it.
They’re easy to remove too, which is why some municipalities remove all their cushions every winter so the snowplows can plow freely. Just store them for a few months and lay them back down come spring.
Top RubberForm Speed Cushions Qualities:
- 100% recycled rubber and plastic
- Made in America
- Modular for easy maintenance
- Hassle-free installation
- Lets emergency vehicles pass unimpeded
- Won’t chip, crack, crumble, or corrode
- Looks good for years and years, way longer than asphalt
So what now?
One of the biggest problems for local governance is pleasing everybody in the room. Most solutions to public necessities require great compromise or just straightforwardly frustrating one or more of the stakeholders at the table. RubberForm speed cushions offer a rare win-win for everyone.
A long-lasting speed cushion with minimal maintenance will please your budget hawks. The 100% recycled origins will please all the eco-friendly folks. The fact that we source, design, and manufacture everything right here in Western New York will please just about everybody else.
When you’re ready to make your streets safer the simplest way possible, give RubberForm a call.
FAQs
Are your speed cushions and speed tables truly made in the USA?
We are the only true U.S. manufacturer of recycled composite plastic speed cushions and speed tables. We source all our recycled materials domestically, which means we’re helping clean up our backyard. We also design and manufacture all our products right here in Western New York, because we believe in American ingenuity and hardworking American hands.
How are your speed cushions and speed tables anchored down?
We offer a lag bolt anchor mounting system consisting of a lag bolt, plastic lag shield, and washer to anchor into pavement or concrete. There are 4 anchor holes for each modular section. We also include a two-part mortar cement that goes into the holes. This helps anchor the cushion or table on high traffic roads.
What material are your speed cushions and speed tables made of?
Our speed cushions and speed tables use a custom composite recycled plastic material that won’t chip, crack, crumble, or corrode. We have innovated our materials to outlast crumb rubber speed humps under heavy traffic over many years of use.
Can we remove your speed cushions and speed tables for the winter when our snowplows are on the roads?
Yes, if you need to remove them for the winter, just unbolt and store for the season. If needed, seal the holes with any silicone-based material so water, dirt, and rocks do not get lodged in them.
Date Published: September 8, 2022
