High-Tension Cable Barrier (HTCB) is a flexible barrier system used on a roadside or as a median barrier to reduce the severity of run-off-the-road crashes. These systems typically consist of three or four cables under high tension supported by breakaway steel posts. The most common use of these systems has been in wide depressed medians.

HTCB is one of the most versatile and forgiving barriers built. It is designed so that when struck, the posts break and the cables flex to absorb the vehicles kinetic energy and redirect the vehicle along the barrier. This barrier design was developed in Europe and only became available in the United States in early 2000.

Cable barriers are flexible barriers, made from steel cables mounted on weak steel posts, resulting in less occupant impact force as it absorbs energy from the crash, capturing or redirecting the vehicle.