A 'Road Zipper' Truck Moving 1500 Pound Median Barriers on the Golden Gate Bridge

In 2015 the Golden Gate Bridge was closed to allow installation of a new safety barrier between northbound and southbound lanes on the San Francisco Bay Area landmark. A key aspect of the $30 million system is the Road Zipper, a highly specialized truck built by Lindsay Transportation Solutions that can rapidly shift the barrier one lane over to accommodate various traffic patterns throughout the day.

It’s no simple feat as each of the system’s 3,500 steel-reinforced barriers weighs 1,500 pounds. The system was tested during the bridge closure, and a number of people caught the truck (the bridge authority has two) in action. The zipper-like action of the truck is curiously mesmerizing.

The new safety system replaces the plastic tubes that were in place for more than 50 years. Crossover accidents were common with the old system–16 people died in 128 head-on collisions between 1970 and 2015.