This post is part three of a five part article dealing with
types of bollards and their ideal uses. So
far I've discussed typical types of bollards, and ideal applications in traffic
denial. Today I’ll discuss typical
parking lot bollards, which also includes traffic denial but is more
specific to the parking lot itself.
Introduction
There are many assets within a parking lot that need to be
protected from the errant driver. Though
parking lot speeds are assumed to be lower than other applications, driver
mistakes such as driving forward instead of reverse (or vice versa), contribute
to accidental impacts. The lack of
curbing or faded lane striping also contribute to drivers short cutting corners
or avoiding driving lanes altogether.
This presents the need to protect certain areas from vehicles, usually
cars and light trucks.
Utility Protection
Often shopping centers or other locations require dedicated
fire hydrant, gas meters, electrical panels, or other utilities that are
located in or near the parking lot. For
obvious reasons, these utilities need to be protected, usually on all sides,
from potential accidental impact. In the
gas of natural gas lines, it is of special importance that the area is well
protected by strong bollards because of the potential of fire or explosion from
impact.
Overhead Signs
Many businesses have overhead signs mounted to large posts
near the street. These posts as well
need to be protected from errant vehicles that could potential cause damage
significant enough to topple the structure.
Embedded bollards are used when there is danger of catastrophic
damage. However, less expensive surface
mounted or rebounding bollards are also used when the danger is less severe and
the purpose is to avoid occasion damage.
This is also done at times with large light posts or electronic
information signage.
Corners / Entrance
Driveways
Malls, grocery stores, and convenience stores are move a
great deal of product, and need delivery trucks to frequently re-store their
wares. These trucks need to make wide
turns an often accidentally cut corners which can lead to damage to buildings,
landscaping, and driveway surfacing. Lack
of curbing within parking lots also contributes to the propensity for drivers
to cut lane corners, leading to more potential damage. Bollards can be used at these corners to
prevent these short cutting drivers from damaging important assets. These can be embedded in the landscaping areas
or on the driving surface at the edge of a turn.
Parking Signs
A unique but common application of the bollard is as a
protective device for sign posts. The
Americans with Disabilities Act mandates handicap parking spaces and
appropriate signage. Many companies also
create preferred parking spaces, such as “employee of the month”, which need
signage to identify the space. However
signs in the middle of a parking lot can take many bumps which eventually bend
and break the sign. A bollard can be
used in lieu of or in conjunction with a wheel stop to prevent vehicles from
impacting the sign post. The bollard
does this through increased conspicuity and a psychological desire not to
impact a more foreboding object by the driver.
Recharging Stations
Becoming more popular is the addition of electric vehicle recharging stations which
involves especially expensive equipment that must be protected from
damage. This is a similar application to
an air fill station that might be found in a gas station. A couple well placed bollards in front of the
equipment is a smart investment.
Access Prevention
A common use of bollards is to prevent access by vehicle to
areas intended only for pedestrians.
This could be a small access alley or a restaurant eating location just
off the parking lot. Whenever pedestrian
safety is at risk, it is important to adequately protect them from potential
run-away vehicles. A simple decorative
gate is simply not enough. When aesthetics
are especially important, architectural bollards are often used, or in lieu of
those, large concrete planters can serve the purpose of a bollard if
specifically designed for that purpose.
Ice Shacks / Small
Out Buildings
It’s not uncommon to find small out building in a
strip-mall. These are often “ice shacks”
or small drive-thru building such as an ATM, mailbox, or DVD rental. Because these areas are in the middle of
travel areas of a parking lot, protection around them is desirable and usually
occurs in the form of a “picket fence” of bollards completely surrounding the
building.
Parking Garages /
Public Parking Lots
Public parking garages nearly always have toll shacks or
other revenue
equipment that require protection from errant vehicles. Should the station be manned, it is especially
important to use strong protective bollards to guard the area. One case that is unique, however, is the
addition of bollards in post-tensioned concrete structures. The tendons which keep the concrete in
compression are extremely important and cannot be damaged by drilling or coring
into the structure. When adding any of
the numerous bollards found in a typical parking structure, care must be taken
not to damage the tendons. As well, the
bollard should be designed with a shear point either in the anchors used or in
the bollard itself, such that upon impact, the structural concrete is not
damaged, which could lead to a catastrophic failure of the building. For this reason, surface mounted bollards are more
often used in post-tensioned concrete applications.
 |
| Failed Structural Concrete Building |
Conclusion
Bollards are used throughout parking lots for numerous
reasons. It’s not uncommon for new
parking lot construction to contain scores of bollards and bollards signs
throughout various areas. Proper design
and placement of bollard decrease damage to assets and protect pedestrians.
In the next two parts of this article, we’ll look at the
following to areas of interest:
Drive-Thru Lanes
Factories and Warehouses
