More bicyclists in cities will require more bicycle parking - bike bollards are one solutio
You've seen them a millions times but probably don't know what they are called. But now that we are seeing more and more people riding bicycles, these simple, knobby, century-old devices can be a major problem-solver for cities and towns.
What are they? Bollards. What can we use them for? Traffic control and bike parking - bike bollards.
Bike bollard
Bollards are those posts you see stuck in concrete all over the place. The posts that prevent motorists from driving up onto a sidewalk and into a plate glass window. The posts that let motorists know you can drive here but you can't drive there. The posts that protect pedestrians at corners and other critical areas.
Bollards have been around forever. In old England, they were first created by burying cannons upside down in the ground. Sailors would use them to tie up their boats. Bollards were used to designate wagon and buggy trails (getting run over by a horse, like a car, would certainly hurt).
As you can imagine, bollards come in all shapes, sizes and colors. Some are just a straight up post, perhaps made out of concrete or stainless steel. Others, like the ones at the White House, are huge in diameter and can be retracted into the ground to let a government vehicle go by. When out of the ground, they can stop a dump truck.
Others are fancier. They might have a few lines carved into them or even painted with more intricate designs. In Australia, bollards were painted to look like humans. (Sure one is fine. But a crowd of people bollards might get kind of well, crowded).
Bike bollards serve two functions
Bottom line - bollards are a necessity in any city or town.
These traffic control devices can serve a dual purpose for a new trend that is taking place in towns around the world.
That trend is bicycle commuting.
Everywhere you look, more and more cities are adding bike lanes and paths to make it easier for bicyclists to get from point A to point B. There are too many cars on city streets. People spend too much time sitting in their vehicles, sitting at their desks or sitting on their couches.
So, more people are taking to riding their bicycles. Millennials love bicycles. For baby boomers with aging knees, bicycling is the new jogging.
The challenge is that at some point along their journey, these bicyclists have to stop. With more bike lanes and bikes, cities and towns need more bicycle parking racks. You certainly don't want all these bicycles locked to trees, sign posts or guardrails.
In many high pedestrian and bicycle traffic areas, space is tight. That's where bike bollards come in. A bike bollard is basically a standard bollard but has a circle, square or triangle where a bicyclist can lock their bike.
What's great about bike bollards, as opposed to say a grid racks, is that the bollard with a circle can support a bicycle in a few places to keep it upright. In addition, they could also provide two points of security - use a U-shaped lock to lock the frame and then use another lock to secure the front wheel and frame. That's a secure bike!
Now, certainly there are limits to what you can do with bike bollards. For example, if you have an area with heavy foot traffic, you certainly don't want to have people locking their bikes to the bollards and blocking pathways.
Or, if you have an area where a bollard is placed close to the curb, you don't want to have bikes all over that bollard not only blocking access but also perhaps blocking visibility.
Cities also have regulations regarding the placement of bollards in terms of making sure emergency vehicles can get through an area when necessary.
But there are plenty of other instances where bike bollards can serve a dual-purpose. If a city is going to install a bollard, why not make it a bike parking rack as well?
There's also an opportunity here for businesses to sponsor these bollards. Perhaps add a plaque with the business' name. If you have room, perhaps opt for a custom bike rack that could include a large logo of a business and use that as a bollard.
You see it in news articles and the stats. We are returning to the age of the bicycle. Sure it's old fashioned, but it's a great alternative to today's car-dependent mode of transportation. Bicycles are healthier, create zero pollution and take up hardly any space.
In addition, with advances in technology, you are also seeing the rise of electric bikes.
Here's a question that gets asks daily in every town. "I need to get to the other side of town to meet some friends - do I hop in my car, slog through traffic, drive around in circles looking for a parking spot, fill up a parking meter with quarters and then worry all night about how much time I have left on the meter?"
"Or do I simply ride my bike/electric bike to my destination?"
Einstein said "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."
Adding more bicycle infrastructure to allow for the safe and free flow of bicycles in a city is one very simple solution for congestion.
Using bike bollards to provide bicycle parking racks for those bicycles and to keep pedestrians safe is another.