Milwaukee to join SAFER set.

Officials at the Milwaukee Mile have confirmed that they plan to add the increasingly popular SAFER Barrier to the entire length of its one-mile oval this spring.

The energy-absorbing barrier, which consists of rectangular steel tubing backed by polystyrene foam blocks that are installed in front of the track's traditional cement walls, is designed to reduce forces incurred by a car in an accident, and thus increase driver safety. The technology is tailor-made to address each track's design, meaning that the Mile will get a bespoke set of barriers to install.

"The Milwaukee Mile has a rich racing history," said COO Gary Girard, "but, with the instalment of the SAFER Barrier by 30 April, we look forward to providing the safest racing environment available for all of our competitors - from the stars of the Indy 500 to our weekend road course club racers."

The addition of the SAFER Barrier to the Milwaukee Mile marks the first time that every oval which will host the IndyCar Series in 2006 will have the energy-absorbing wall.

"We applaud Milwaukee's decision to add the SAFER Barrier," said IRL president and COO Brian Barnhart, "It is great to see each of the ovals we will race at in 2006 has taken steps to improve driver safety in this way."

The SAFER Barrier was first installed on the four outside retaining walls of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in May 2002, following nearly four years of development by the Speedway, Indy Racing League and University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Midwest roadside safety facility. NASCAR joined in with the development programme in September 2000. Since its debut at IMS during the 2002 Indianapolis 500, nearly every major oval racing facility in the United States has installed the SAFER system.