Presumably because the bridges are constructed to take the weight of foot and cycle traffic, maybe horses too, definitely not motor vehicles. Yes, I know MVs shouldn't have access to these bridges, but that doesn't mean they actually don't.Nearholmer wrote: ↑6 Jun 2023, 2:38pm Prompted by this thread, and MJR I particular, I became “bollard critical” today when I popped out on an errand.
The more I look, the more I’m mystified by some of the ones that I’ve simply navigated round and not thought about before, most particularly, on the approach to bridges.
Several small bridges over streams and rivers on my trip, and they’ve all got at least one bollard bang in the middle of the path at the entry and exit to the bridge. Why? The more I think about it, the less I can see what purpose the serve; it’s quite bizarre. Worst still, one recently re-decked bridge now has the stupid little, half-invisible ones as per the OP, rather than nice, big, yellow ones, which at least are prominent.
As for the design of the bollards themselves, I think in many cases it's a misguided attempt at "blending in with the environs", particularly in rural and/or historic surroundings.