"It's not often you hear a minister talking bollards," said Rosie Winterton, Minister of State for Transport.
The scheme was originally piloted to run for three months in a selected busy market town, but will now be extended locally and be adopted nationally.
Local Councillor Bob Simmons, the driving force behind the scheme, is understandably delighted with the way it has gone.
"Success is an over-used word, but this has been resounding, " said councillor Simmons. "We needed to get away from the unfriendly pop-up bollard. We found that they worked well for local people, but visitors sometimes didn't understand why a bus or specially licensed vehicle could drive over them, but when they tried it, it would pop-up and remove the engine. That can be a little annoying, quite costly and doesn't encourage them to come back," explained Bob.
"This town has always been a welcoming place so I felt we needed to make the bollards a bit more user friendly. We had about 25 enquiries for the post. We needed someone with clear loud diction and good arm dexterity," added Mr Simmons.
First Human Bollard - Eddie Ochenbayer
The successful candidate was Eddie Ochenbayer, 25, and a local student. "I was in-between courses and was in a bit of a hole, so this opportunity came at the right time for me," said Eddie. "I saw the ad and thought that I could do the job. Although I lack experience, shouting and waving does come naturally to me. Also, being a student, I am used to being fairly stationary," said Eddie.
"Basically, if a bus, trades vehicle or any vehicle with a specially licensed sticker on the window comes along, I just duck. If a private vehicle comes along then I shout 'stop' and wave. Usually, that's sufficient, but if they look like they are still going to try and continue then I shout and wave quite frantically. 9 times out of 10, they do stop, especially when they see the whites of your eyes. Of a night, I wear a traffic cone on my head. I do have plenty experience of that," explained Eddie
"The 'will they, won't they stop' makes the job a lot more interesting than it appears. The only real problem is when they try to sneak in behind a bus. I have to reach up and grab the axle," smiled Eddie. "Also I'm on hand to take insurance details should they plough into me. The damage to their vehicle should be minimal though," added Eddie.
"I do get asked a lot about toilet breaks which seems to amuse passers-by. I'm linked to the underground sewerage system, so no real problem there," said Eddie.
The Transport Minister added that recruitment for the schemes would be in partnership with local colleges and universities. "Students often get a bad rap, so this will give them the opportunity to engage with the wider community. We've conducted a study during the pilot scheme and virtually every motorist has said they would rather hit a student than a bollard, " said Minister Rosie Winterton.
