A billion bollards?
From Strong Towns:
A billion bollards! That’s what we called for back in 2021. As Congress was assembling what would eventually become the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), we asked ourselves: Instead of expanding highways and building more interchanges, what could the federal government fund that would make our cities financially stronger and our citizens safer?
As I wrote then:
America needs a billion bollards. There is no coherent argument against lining every street in America with them. This is the minimum level of protection needed to keep people safe from violence. It is the least we can do to correct the massive asymmetry of risk experienced on our nation’s streets by people outside of a vehicle.
Engineers suggest that bollards along the sides of our streets might potentially damage automobiles; that is an expression of oversensitivity to the wrong problem.
We routinely protect construction workers with concrete barriers placed between them and traffic, as we should.
There is no reason why people walking along sidewalks, waiting to cross the street, or playing in the park should not be protected from the same threat....
Rob's comment:
Okay, but it would help his argument if he provided some facts on accidents on bollard-free streets.
Labels: Pedestrian Safety, Traffic in the City