On higher speed arterial roadways or highways, opposing traffic is usually separated by a centre median. Pedestrians at controlled and uncontrolled crossings often use medians as a refuge halfway across an arterial roadway or highway.

Adjacent landowners are increasingly concerned by the effects medians might have on their business and property values. Efficient design of a median therefore needs to address not only vehicular safety and efficiency but also the safety of vulnerable road users and other users.

Various treatments such as barrier curbs, rolled or mountable curbs, depressed medians, painted medians and centre median barriers have been used as methods to separate traffic. This guide highlights the advantages and disadvantages of these methods for various traffic volumes and speeds, as well as specific guidance on the explicit evaluation of road safety outcomes with various median design treatments.

The guide provides comprehensive guidelines or warrants for:• the design and application of medians for different traffic volumes, functional classifications and speeds encountered in Canada in both rural and urban roadways,• the location of medians, edge treatments and features considered for application to particular design situations,• the provision of median barriers in various situations, including the protection of non-motorized road users, and• the inclusion or consideration of active transportation modes and accommodation of transit modes related to median treatments.

Disponible en français :  Pratiques de conception des zones méacute;dianes (2010)