Street bollards belong in skip

ONE of the reasons put forward for potentially having to bring back Ashbourne’s ghastly bollards after Shrovetide was pedestrian safety.

True enough, there are currently white markings setting out an extended walkway for pedestrians alongside the pavement in St John Street, and it will be great to see these made permanent eventually with wider kerbs.

But do we really need bollards to emphasise the dividing line between foot traffic and vehicle traffic? For decades now town centres have had separate cycle lanes with only a strip of white paint guiding motorists out of them –there has never been a need for bollards there.

And, more to the point, the recent (controversial) changes to the highway code place a greater onus on the motorists to look out for pedestrians, and offer people walking on roads a greater priority.

If a driver was to mow down a pedestrian who was walking in a clearly marked, designated lane, then he or she would be punished to the fullest extent of the law. And rightly so.

But the likelihood of that happening is very slim, and certainly isn’t raised all that much by the road surface being at the same height as the pedestrian walkway.

Lots of streets across the country have shared spaces for cars and people.

If a driver was speeding along carelessly and (perish the thought) careered into a pedestrian using the footpath, then a kerb stone wouldn’t really make all that much difference.

Neither, incidentally, would the bollards.

They’re made of plastic. And if they’re light enough to be tossed into the Henmore, they’re not really going to provide much protection from a car or lorry that’s wandered out of its carriageway.

Leave the bollards where they belong. In a skip.