We have those arrester beds here in Australia too. They are usually found at points along a very long downhill stretch when a truck's brakes might fail. They are filled with gravel and are very effective at stopping a heavy vehicle in complete safety.

It amazes me how people can be so delayed to not realize that they need to SLOW DOWN and maintain A MINIMUM of FOUR car lengths ahead of them in the winter. I had this one guy high beam me and honk at me while it was icy and snowing heavily, in the far right lane. There were three other lanes to choose from. Speed limit was 55, but I was going roughly 45. He ended up going around me eventually, but a few miles north, he crashed into the guardrail, presumably because he lost traction.