Kenneth A. Stonex Roadside Safety Award

This prestigious award was established in 1991 to recognize lifetime contributions to roadside safety. It was originally sponsored by General Motors Corporation and named after Kenneth A. Stonex, a GM employee who was a pioneer for roadside safety long before the seriousness of roadway departure crashes was recognized by most transportation agencies.

The award has previously been presented at the annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) by the Standing Committee on Roadside Safety Design (A2A04, AFB20, and AKD20). When GM sponsorship of the award ended, it continued to be presented thanks to the support and sponsorship of numerous private companies active in the roadside safety community. The award was last presented in January 2025. Moving forward, the award will be presented at the International Road Federation (IRF) Global R2T event.

Submission Deadline

The submission deadline for nominations is August 7, 2026. Please submit your nominations before the noted deadline using the Submit Nomination button below. If you have further questions, please send them to Dr. Ronald Faller using the contact information below.

Submit Nomination

Award Presentation

The award will be presented at the 9th International Road Federation’s (IRF’s) Global Roads To Tomorrow (R2T) Conference and Exhibition, held in Santa Clara, California. The multi-day event will occur from November 3rd through 6th at the Santa Clara Convention Center. The main hotel for the IRF Global R2T is the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara. The award presentation will occur on the evening of Thursday, November 5th at the IRF Awards and Gala Dinner from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. The selected awardee will receive (1) named plaque, (2) $2,000 monetary honorarium or award, and (3) $2,700 travel allocation or stipend. The award is sponsored and supported by several companies and/or individuals within the roadside safety community, whom will be recognized in future announcements as well as at the IRF Awards and Gala Dinner.

Contact Information

Ronald K. Faller, Ph.D., P.E.
Director and Research Professor
Co-Chair – Task Force on Performance Standards for Roadside Safety Hardware & Features

Midwest Roadside Safety Facility (MwRSF)
Civil and Environmental Engineering Department
Nebraska Transportation Center
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Prem S. Paul Research Center at Whittier School
Room 130 | 2200 Vine Street
Lincoln, Nebraska 68583-0853
Phone 402-472-6864
rfaller1@unl.edu

Previous Winners

YearNameOrganization
2025Jan WenallSwedish National Road & Transport Research Institute
2024Mark AytonSafe Roads R&D, Inc.
2023Dr. Roger BlighTexas A&M Transportation Institute
2022Dr. Hampton Clay Gabler IIIVirginia Tech University
2021Dick AlbinFHWA
2020Dr. Ronald K. FallerMidwest Roadside Safety Facility
2019Dr. Raphael GrzebietaUNSW - Sydney, Australia
2018Frank JulianFHWA
2017Nick ArtimovichFHWA
2016Karl UrlbergerSPS – Schutzplanken GmbH, Germany
2015Mike DreznesInternational Road Federation
2014Jim BrydenNYSDOT/Highway Safety Consultant
2013Dr. Rod TroutbeckTroutbeck & Associates
2012Dr. Malcolm RayRoadsafe LLC
Dr. Richard G McGinnis*Bucknell University
2011Dr. Dean L. SickingMidwest Roadside Safety Facility
2010Owen DenmanBarrier Systems Inc.
2009Thomas TurbellSwedish National Road & Transport Research Institute – VTI
2008Richard PowersFHWA
2007Dr. Jack CarneyUniversity of Missouri – Rolla
2006Arthur DinitzTranspo Industries
2005Malcolm MacDonaldTransport Research Laboratory
2004King K. MakTexas Transportation Institute
2003Dr. C. Eugene ButhTexas Transportation Institute
2002James H. HattonFHWA
2001Roger L. StoughtonCaltrans
2000William C. BurnettNYSDOT
1999Dr. Vittorio GiavottoPolitecnico di Milano
1998John C. FitchLime Rock, Connecticut
1997Jarvis D. MichieSan Antonio, Texas
1996Flory J. “Tam” TamaniniFHWA
1995Maurice E. BronstadSouthwest Research Institute
1994Dr. Hayes E. Ross, Jr.Texas Transportation Institute
1993Dr. Teddy J. HirschTexas Transportation Institute
1992Malcolm GrahamNYSDOT
Eric F. Nordlin*Caltrans
Dr. Edward R. Post*Midwest Roadside Safety Facility
1991John L. BeatonCaltrans
*Posthumous Awards

Submission Details

The nomination packet must include:

  1. one letter of nomination describing a candidate’s lifetime contributions to roadside safety (limited to 3 pages) and
  2. one third-party letter of recommendation supporting the nomination (not counted toward 3-page limit).

The nomination packet may include additional supporting information regarding any of the following or similar topics:

  1. nominee’s resume and/or curriculum vitae is recommended but is not counted toward 3-page limit;
  2. service activities to profession (i.e., participation and leadership in panels, committees/subcommittees, associations, societies, task forces, and organizations);
  3. contributions in roadside safety product development, hardware innovations, and intellectual property;
  4. contributions to improved roadside safety standards, guidelines, specifications, policies, and crashworthiness criteria;
  5. advancements and use of testing, computational mechanics, and in-service performance evaluations within roadside safety;
  6. information dissemination through (1) publications (i.e., standards, reports, summaries, journal articles, conference papers, and books), (2) presentations, webinars, seminars, invited talks & keynotes, and posters, as well as (3) media releases and interviews; and
  7. prior recognitions, achievements, awards, and honors.

More Information

Contact

Aubrey Perry
aperry@IRF.global
+1 703 535 1001

Address

IRF Global
Madison Place
500 Montgomery Street
Fifth Floor
Alexandria, VA 22314
USA