Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB)

Pedestrian Crosswalk System

The main benefit of this system is an increase in motorist compliance when it comes to yielding to pedestrians at crosswalks and other crossings. When compared to standard round beacons, which yield about a 15%-20% rate of effectiveness, RRFB have shown a bump to approximately 80% or more when combined with appropriate installation and signage. These beacons are pedestrian activated, making use of push button and passive detection technology to increase safety.

The Federal Highway Administration has granted approval under 1A-21, for the optional use of Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons (RRFB) as a supplemental traffic beacon for uncontrolled pedestrian or school crosswalk signs, where they would function solely as warning beacons.

Studies confirm the very high rates of motorist compliance with RRFB compared to standard beacons, thanks in part to the combination of these following requirements:

• High signal visibility
• RRFBs installed on both sides of the road facing approaching traffic
• Supportive signage

ELTEC‘s Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon is FHWA compliant, including the updated requirements for Class 1 light intensity. According to FHWA specifications, Class 1 RRFB signals (the same found in emergency response vehicles) must be rated to 200 cd (candela, a measurement of brightness). It’s important to note that the surface area of the signal does not determine brightness, which is instead influenced by the type of LED and reflector built into the signal head. ELTEC has always used lab certified Class 1 LEDs in order to provide consistent quality and match the required Class 1 light level.

One of the key requirements of the FHWA is the placement of traffic beacon signals on both sides of the road facing approaching traffic. To account for diverse traffic patterns, ELTEC has designed two styles of Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon light bar: one-sided with 2 RRFBs and two-sided wraparound with 4 RRFBs. Both designs feature recessed signals to minimize vandalism and offer an optional pedestrian verification signal housed on the the ends of each bar.

RRFB Styles & Install

Both light bars come with a wide range of customizable options so they can be adjusted to your particular projects specifications. As the Federal Highway Administration does not specify a particular light bar finish, ELTEC offers Federal Yellow or brushed aluminum as standard finishes. However, we also offer alternative powder coated custom color options, to match community colors, school colors, or any other locally appropriate color option. These bars are also perfect options for retrofitting to existing pedestrian crossings without a traffic beacon or signals, or for supplementing crossings that currently only make use of round flashing beacons.

Additionally, our light bars will work with either DC (solar) or AC systems that incorporate a 120VAC or 12VDC power supply. ELTEC also manufactures complete solar powered or AC systems for new projects or retrofits that require a new power system. For all ELTEC solar powered systems, we size our equipment for optimal performance to ensure light intensity never fades or falters. As part of our solar powered system services, we will give you a sizing report to confirm the reliability of system performance. We do this to ensure that our DC systems will not be undersized, no matter how many activations per day a crossing sees.

For install, units/poles are typically connected by radio for wireless operation, eliminating the need to trench or bore before installing a new traffic beacon. Our radios have 65,000 different addresses to ensure that only the desired units operate from a particular signal. It is still possible to hardwire our units if desired.