Many invest in bollards for their business or residential property to prevent unwanted visitors. However, barricade posts have an even more important application: safety. The proper installation of guard posts helps prevent accidents that would otherwise lead to injury and even death. How do bollards make the world safer?

Urban Danger

In urban areas, there are a lot of cars. For each car, however, there are at least as many (or more) pedestrians. Particularly in larger cities like New York, walking is an important way of getting around. Sidewalks are designated for pedestrians, and the main roadway for cars; however, this doesn't always protect pedestrian safety. Each year, thousands of pedestrians are injured as a result of motor accidents. Senior citizens disproportionately fall victim to these unfortunate incidents. Cars colliding with each other is another extremely dangerous leading to many injuries and deaths. While cars driving in the city tend to not go fast enough to cause deadly collisions, it only takes one person speeding to lead to tragic consequences.

How Can Bollards Help?

Bollards have a surprising number of applications when it comes to stopping pedestrian injury. The most obvious application of barricade posts is simply providing a separation between the sidewalk and main road. This helps protect pedestrians from out-of-control vehicles—the idea being the cars strike the bollards rather than the pedestrians. However, did you know vehicle bollards can help prevent an out-of-control vehicle from ever existing? When placed properly, traffic bollards prevent accidents by alerting drivers to changes in the road, such as a narrowing roadway or shoulder, making them slow down and pay attention. Temporary bollards are often used during construction projects to divert traffic. This improves safety. Flexible bollards can be installed at tunnel and bridge access points to help prevent cars from passing each other. In areas where passing is dangerous, these barricades can help save lives. Many cities suffer from traffic congestion. Public transportation is one strategy to ease this congestion; but buses and trolleys can exacerbate the problem if not managed properly. Cars pulling into and parking in bus stops slow down thousands of commuters with their lack of consideration. It's also difficult for buses to pull out of bus stops into oncoming traffic, due to their size and slow acceleration. Bollards serve as a novel solution to these congestion problems. Cities like Paris, Bogotá and Vancouver have implemented vehicle barricades to create a completely separate bus lane. This means only buses and a few other select vehicles can use these paths. Public transit is therefore much faster, making it a more viable option for commuters. With the improvement of public transit, people have more options for their personal transportation. When buses are slow and unreliable, people want their own cars; when buses are fast and timely, people can more easily imagine living without a personal vehicle. On a large scale, forgoing personal vehicles means helping the environment as well as significantly improving traffic congestions. All this from bollards. Bollards offer a variety of benefits to cities when implemented properly. They are an indispensable part of urban planning, and can help make our world safer, healthier and more pleasant.