Safety Bollards: Types, Installation, & Benefits

Increasing storefront protection for pedestrians and property

Cars are a vital part of daily life, offering convenience and mobility. However, their size and speed can pose serious risks to pedestrians, storefronts, and public infrastructure. That’s where safety bollards come in. They play a critical role in modern urban planning, providing a protective barrier that helps prevent accidents, direct traffic, and provide reliable access control.

What Are Safety Bollards?

Safety bollards are sturdy posts designed to guide traffic, protect pedestrians, and safeguard buildings or assets from vehicle intrusion. These protective barriers are commonly seen in public spaces, parking lots, storefronts, and urban centers.

How Safety Bollards Enhance Protection in Public Spaces

By acting as a visual and physical deterrent, safety bollards improve pedestrian safety, define boundaries, and help prevent accidental or intentional vehicle collisions. They provide passive security in urban environments where people and vehicles coexist.

Types of Safety Bollards

Safety bollards come in several forms, each designed to meet specific functional and site requirements. Whether the goal is to provide constant protection, allow occasional access, or manage dynamic entry points, there’s a bollard type to match. Understanding the differences between fixed, removable, and retractable bollards can help ensure the right solution is chosen for long-term safety and efficiency.

Fixed Bollards: Permanent Protection

Fixed bollards are embedded directly into the ground to offer long-term, immovable protection. Often used to safeguard building perimeters, pedestrian zones, and critical infrastructure, these bollards are ideal for locations where access is never required and consistent security is a priority.

Removable Bollards: Flexible Access Solutions

Removable bollards provide the ability to secure an area when needed while allowing occasional access. These bollards can be unlocked and removed from their mounting to provide access for maintenance or emergency vehicles.

Retractable Bollards: Convenience and Control

Retractable, or telescopic bollards, slide into the ground when not in use and rise when access control is needed. These are commonly used in areas requiring dynamic access, such as parking lots or gated lanes.

Comparing Fixed, Removable & Retractable Bollards

Each type serves a unique function. Fixed bollards offer consistent protection, removable bollards are useful in mixed-use areas, and retractable bollards provide automation and flexibility. Choosing the right type depends on your site’s security and accessibility needs.

Materials and Construction of Safety Bollards

Safety bollards are commonly made from materials such as steel, stainless steel, concrete, cast iron, and plastic. The material chosen depends on the intended application—steel offers strength, stainless steel adds corrosion resistance, and concrete provides a heavy-duty barrier with a lower cost.

Do Safety Bollards Need to Be Filled with Concrete?

Many fixed bollards, especially those used for vehicle impact resistance, are embedded into the ground and filled with concrete to improve stability and durability. Concrete filling is often used to strengthen steel security pipe bollards.

How Bollard Materials Affect Durability and Safety

Material selection directly impacts performance. Stainless steel resists weathering and rust, making it ideal for coastal or urban areas. Steel bollards, often powder-coated, are tough and secure. Plastic and flexible polymers may be used in areas requiring visibility without physical impact resistance.

Safety Bollard Installation

What Factors Affect Bollard Installation Costs?

Several factors influence installation costs, including site conditions, the depth of excavation required, surface materials, and the type of bollard being installed—whether fixed, removable, or retractable. Urban environments can complicate installation due to the presence of underground utilities, requiring careful planning, specialized labor, or even permits. Additional considerations may include drainage, electrical connections (for lighted or automated bollards), and access restrictions at the installation site.

Do You Need Planning Permission for Bollards?

Planning permission is often required when installing bollards in public rights-of-way or areas controlled by municipalities. This may involve submitting site plans, obtaining traffic management approvals, or complying with accessibility standards. On private property, permits may not be necessary—but it’s important to check local building codes and zoning bylaws to avoid violations or future complications.

How Are Safety Bollards Installed?

Although the exact steps vary depending on the bollard model and site requirements, installation typically involves preparing the surface, assessing underground utilities, and creating a foundation to secure the bollard in place. For fixed bollards, this often means excavation and setting the bollard in concrete. Removable and retractable models may require specialized mounting sleeves or retractable housings. Finishing touches might include surface restoration, signage installation, or fitting decorative covers. Professional installation ensures proper alignment, stability, and compliance with safety standards.

Do Bollards Require Insurance or Compliance Certification?

Yes—especially when used for security or impact protection. Crash-rated bollards must meet recognized impact resistance standards such as ASTM F3016 to enhance storefront safety or ASTM F2656, IWA 14, and PAS 68 for high-security crash-rated applications. Compliance with these standards assures specifiers and insurers of the product’s tested performance. In some cases, bollards must also be included in a property’s insurance policy to cover liability or damage claims. Installing certified bollards can lower liability risks, meet risk management requirements, and help qualify for certain types of commercial coverage or municipal approvals.

Factors Driving Building and Pedestrian Collisions

In the US there are approximately 16,000 injuries each year caused by vehicles crashing into buildings. While sometimes occurring within garages or homes, these incidents predominantly transpire within parking lots and other busy urban areas. Diving into the matter, Mark Wright, a crash survivor who himself was struck outside a convenience store in September 2008, has invested a decade in researching these types of incidents. Through his dedicated efforts, he dissects the statistics behind building-crash incidents, identifying the causes behind these events.

Factors such as pedal confusion, speed mismanagement, or driver impairment contribute to scenarios where vehicles inadvertently surge beyond their designated parking spots and collide with storefronts. Compounded by issues like visual misjudgment of distance and positioning—particularly around the termination of parking stalls, drive-through windows, and utility structures—these collisions are distressingly common occurrences. While most of the causes behind these crashes are accidental, some crashes are caused intentionally during ram-raids or targeted attacks.

Pedal Confusion

Pedal confusion, or pedal error, occurs when a driver mistakenly presses the gas pedal instead of the brake, causing the car to move forward. This unexpected motion can cause panic, leading the driver to press down harder, thinking they are applying the brake. Tragically, if they are pressing the gas pedal, this only accelerates the vehicle further, potentially resulting in a crash. Pedal confusion, or accelerator-brake confusion, is one of the most common driving errors that can lead to accidents, accounting for more than a quarter of incidents where a vehicle collides with a building or wall.

This type of error is particularly concerning in areas where cars park perpendicular to storefronts, a layout commonly used to optimize parking space and traffic flow at busy establishments like convenience stores, such as Circle K and Couche-Tard. In these settings, the risk of pedal error can not only lead to significant property damage including windows, goods, and furnishings inside retail stores, but also puts customers and staff members inside stores at risk. Pedestrians passing by or waiting in front of the store are also at risk of injury, as was the case in 2017 when a Chicago man became a double amputee after being pinned against the store front of a 7-11. Businesses can also be held financially liable; in this case, the man was awarded a 91-million-dollar settlement.

For retail stores and property management companies, implementing safety measures such as storefront bollards in parking areas is the best way to mitigate these risks. Impact resistant bollards can provide a physical barrier that protects buildings and pedestrians from the consequences of pedal confusion.

Ram Raids

A ram-raid is a criminal act in which a vehicle is intentionally driven into a building or store front, to gain unauthorized access and steal goods. This method is frequently employed by criminals seeking to quickly breach a premises and make off with valuable merchandise.

The risks associated with ram raids are substantial, particularly due to the criminal motivations involved. Unlike pedal confusion accidents, ram raids are deliberate acts carried out with the goal of burglary, making the potential for damage much higher. Given that the impact is intended to breach the building, the force of the collision can be significantly higher, leading to more severe structural damage, shattered glass, and harm to bystanders. Approximately 7% of all collisions involving buildings stem from ram raid thefts, underscoring the prevalence of this criminal technique.

To mitigate the risks posed by ram raids, business owners and property management firms should implement strategies similar to those employed to prevent damage caused by pedal confusion accidents. One common measure is the installation of safety bollards or barriers strategically positioned around vulnerable areas of the building, such as entrances and windows. However, these bollards will need to withstand higher impacts, as vehicles involved in ram raids often travel at greater speeds compared to those in pedal confusion accidents. Additionally, the implementation of access control systems and security cameras can deter potential criminals.

How Safety Bollards Improve Pedestrian & Property Safety

Driving is often the riskiest part of a person’s day. A World Health organization report estimates that each year in the United States, 10.6 people die per 100,000 people due to traffic accidents. Drivers are accustomed to inching past accident scenes on the highway, and often the risks of driving are associated with these high speed, high traffic areas. However, fatalities and injuries can also happen in low-speed and pedestrian areas. Safety bollards are key to shielding storefronts and pedestrians from these risks, maintaining a safer environment.

Can Safety Bollards Stop a Vehicle?

Crash-rated bollards are engineered to stop vehicles of specific weights at defined speeds. ASTM standards like M30 and M50 outline penetration ratings and are tested against real-world vehicle impacts to ensure performance.

How Do Bollards Protect Pedestrians in Busy Areas?

In dense areas, bollards offer a buffer between vehicular traffic and walkways, shielding pedestrians from accidental or intentional vehicle intrusion. They’re often installed near crosswalks, plazas, and storefronts to increase visibility and safety.

How Effective Are Safety Bollards in Reducing Accidents?

Data shows that well-placed safety bollards reduce accidents involving pedestrians and storefront crashes. They provide both physical protection and psychological cues that influence driver behavior, making spaces safer overall.

Choosing Safety Bollards

The selection of safety bollards for storefronts and pedestrian areas is a nuanced process that requires careful consideration of both functionality and aesthetics. There are several factors to consider:

Consider the Site Layout

• Consider the distance between the road or parking area and the area you are trying to protect. Is there parking immediately in front or just a loading and drop off zone?
• If there is parking directly in front of the area, is it perpendicular, such as in nose-in or back-out layouts, or parallel? Nose-in or back-out parking presents a higher risk of damage during pedal error incidents. In such cases, placing a security bollard at the end of each parking stall can prevent accidental crashes into buildings or pedestrian areas.
• Are there other obstacles such as benches, bins, bike racks or fire hydrants that could either impede bollard installation, or provide additional barriers between the cars and the storefront?
• What vehicle paths are possible? Is there a long “runway” where a car could gather speed and crash into the building? Or is the area mid-block on a tree-lined street where speed is more difficult to build?

How is the Space Used?

Different functions, such as retail, offices, and warehouses, require specific bollard solutions to address unique safety needs.

• Retail spaces demand bollards that combine aesthetics and protection for both pedestrians and store structures.
• Offices might focus on safeguarding entryways, parking areas, and common zones with a balance between design and practicality.
• Warehouses may prioritize securing inventory, equipment, and operations against potential vehicular threats.
• Other considerations such as ADA requirements, including curb cut-outs, must also be factored in to ensure accessibility alongside bollard placement.

Design Considerations

In some areas, safety bollards should subtly blend with the surroundings to maintain visual harmony. In others, such as those where precision driving is required, high visibility should take priority. Bollards can also be customized with colors or designs that align with the company’s logo and branding. Surrounding architecture is another design factor to consider:

• Historical Areas: Consider architectural bollards that resonate with the historical context, such as those installed on Ladysmith BC’s award-winning “Great Street.”
• Modern Buildings: Stainless steel bollards offer clean lines that complement modern glass and steel constructions.

Alternatives to Safety Bollards

What Can Be Used Instead of Safety Bollards?

Alternatives include planter barriers, fencing, and architectural barriers such as benches or decorative walls. These can blend into the environment while providing some degree of separation and protection.

Difference Between Safety Bollards and Traffic Barriers

Traffic barriers like guardrails or concrete barriers (e.g., Jersey barriers) are designed to deflect vehicles and often used on highways. Safety bollards are more aesthetic and ideal for pedestrian environments where controlled access is needed.

When to Use Jersey Barriers Instead of Bollards

Jersey barriers are better suited for temporary or heavy-duty vehicle deflection in construction zones or event spaces. Bollards are preferred for permanent, discreet protection in urban or pedestrian-friendly areas.

In our rapidly evolving urban landscapes, the integration of safety bollards, from low-impact bollards to steel pipes to crash-rated bollards, has become an essential part of modern planning and design. From protecting storefronts and pedestrians to enhancing aesthetics and complying with regulations, safety bollards serve multifaceted roles.

Installing bollards is not just a functional decision; it’s a statement about a community’s or company’s commitment to safety. Whether it’s historical areas opting for architectural bollards, or modern buildings selecting sleek stainless steel designs, the right safety bollards are an indispensable tool in making places people want to be.

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