Modeling the effect of extreme flood associated with temporary concrete traffic barrier using HEC-RAS

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has a recent interest in the hydraulic performance of temporary concrete traffic barriers (TCTB) due to statewide flooding in recent years. Successfully crash tested barriers have additional height and less open space. This poses a concern to the surround floodplain with respect to hydraulic performance. Two methods are introduced that model the hydraulic performance of standard and modified temporary concrete traffic barrier in the computer-modeling program Hydrologic Engineering Centers - River Analysis System (HEC-RAS). The two methods are the Surface Area Method and The Weir Coefficient Method. Examples of modeling TCTB in HEC-RAS are provided for the two methods along with a parametric study of TCTB placement in floodplains. The three standard temporary concrete traffic barriers evaluated are: Low Profile Concrete Barrier (LPCB), Concrete Safety Barrier (CSB) and Single Slope Concrete Barrier (SSCB). The modified temporary concrete traffic barrier evaluated is the Single Slope Concrete Barrier - Special (SSCB-SPL).