An $8.5 million falling rock barrier fell short of stopping a slab of rock weighing 300 pounds from hitting a car on route 28 in Pittsburgh, officials say.

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Jesse Hess, the driver of the car that was hit, was unharmed when the giant rock smashed the hood of his car and then bounced into the next lane Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.

"I saw it coming down," Hess, 20, of Lower Burrell, said. "It was the size of a VW Bug. Thank God for my airbags, or I wouldn't be alive. I can't believe I made it."

PennDOT spokesman Jim Struzzi said the area is prone to rock slides.

"It's something that Mother Nature created along the roadway. ... It's not a problem that's easily solved."

The rock that hit Hess' car dropped just after the end of a fence that PennDOT installed last year to catch falling rocks.

"This boulder came from a higher elevation, gained some momentum down the slope and bounced or skipped over the drop area and came down into the road," Struzzi said.