Bollards planned to make street events safer in Olde Towne
By Randy Bell
It’s a tragedy that has played out in communities all across the nation – a driver careens into a crowd of people at some outdoor event. Sometimes, it’s an accident; other times, it’s deliberate. Clintonians would like to think it could never happen here, and the City is taking steps to make sure it doesn’t. A popular Olde Towne street venue is being equipped with retractable bollard posts to keep vehicles away from the crowds.
“Our test set will go at either end of Jefferson,” says Mayor Will Purdie. “There’s a casing that they’re in. You drill down in the ground and set that casing. And these [bollards] will actually rise up out of the ground. You lock them in place, and then, when you’re done, you just drop them back down. And you can drive right over them.”
Purdie says it makes sense to do whatever is necessary to create a safer environment when crowds gather in Olde Towne.
“It’s something that I’ve wanted to look at for a long time with events out there on the brick streets.”
The mayor says a worldwide increase in attacks in which vehicles were used as weapons is part of his motivation to have bollards installed. But aside from those acts of terrorism, motorists with no intent to harm anyone could still pose a danger on a crowded street.
Purdie says, “There are a number of scenarios, whether it’s a driver having a medical event, which is not uncommon, or an impaired driver, or somebody coming through the intersection with a lot of people out there…in a very short amount of time, you could have a very, very bad situation.”
While Jefferson Street will get the first bollards, the mayor says additional posts could be installed in other parts of Olde Towne.
“We would like to phase in more at different points along Leake, to give us different configurations to close off for different-sized events.”
The City hopes to complete the project on Jefferson by the end of February, and the bollards could be used for the first time at a music and arts festival in March.
Purdie says, “We’d like to have them in place for Red Brick Roads.”
