A Jersey Barrier is a form of barrier made of concrete. It is also known as a concrete barrier. They are generally used within construction sites, traffic diversion, site management, crowd control, and much more.

Jersey Barriers are made by pouring concrete into specially made pre-cast moulds. The concrete is allowed to dry, and the mould is removed, resulting in a Jersey Barrier. Jersey Barriers also have the ability to interlock, reinforcing their effectiveness.

Jersey Barriers also benefit from being weatherproof as a result of being made from concrete. This is helpful in environments within England that can be wet, cold and windy depending on where you are.

Additionally, concrete barriers are heavy, this makes them extremely difficult to move, and due to the natural durability of concrete, it is difficult to damage. This combination of durability and heavy weight enables a concrete barrier to be one of the best long-term options available.

Why are Jersey Barriers needed?

The function of a barrier is simply to prevent, or limit, access to a site or area. This could be for security reasons, safety reasons, or a combination of both.

Generally, Jersey Barriers are used to prevent members of the public from accessing construction areas, or creating a safe path for them to navigate through beside a construction site.

Jersey Barriers, prevent vehicles from entering sites by force. This can prevent large scale damage to the building, and prevent large scale theft of site equipment/ installations.

Additionally, Jersey barriers are heavy, this makes them extremely difficult to move, and due to the natural durability of concrete, it is difficult to damage. This combination of durability and heavy weight enables a concrete barrier to be one of the best long-term options available.

What are retaining walls?

A retaining wall is a structure that is mainly used to confine land to a specific space. The result is land that is more secure, and in some cases, more accessible to travel through.

An example of this would be a staircase being made on a steep hill, the land would be dug to allow placement of the stairs. All whilst ‘cordoning’ off the surrounding land from the stairs to prevent it from falling onto the stairs.

In essence, a retaining wall works against gravity, it retains the soil in place, preventing it from falling. With that understanding, what would be the best material for a retaining wall?

The best material for a retaining wall

For retaining walls, especially those that are retaining a significant amount of weight, concrete would be the appropriate material to make the retaining wall from. Concrete is naturally heavy, dense, and durable, making it hard to move and less likely to degrade in a short amount of time.

What happens if I don’t have a retaining wall?

Not having a retaining wall could be a massive safety hazard, depending on where the retaining wall is intending to be placed. Let’s take a hill on a public path for example, if the hill is well trodden, there is less likely to be grass, which means there is less footing, especially in wet weather.

Some land is more at risk of experiencing landslides, so pre-empting that possibility by creating a retaining wall for that at-risk land, is a safe option. This can prevent further complications in the future.

Retaining walls have many applications that may actually surprise you, whether that is in your own back garden, a park, almost anywhere!

Here’s another example in which we made a retaining wall in order to support the perimeter of a transport yard. For more information on how a retaining wall could help you, get in contact with us today.

Can Jersey Barriers be used as retaining walls?