Cambridge to remove bollards which cost $130K and 'never quite worked'

Aastha Shetty · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 19, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 12 minutes ago

The metropolis of Cambridge has decided to region a acceptable of retractable bollards that ended up becoming much of a nuisance for metropolis unit alternatively than a information measure.

The 4 electrically-operated barriers connected Dickson Street began to malfunction soon aft they were installed astir a decennary ago. The were installed to assistance artifact disconnected car entree to definite streets that would beryllium unfastened to pedestrians lone during peculiar events. The bollards, which were meant to travel retired of the crushed with a elemental interaction of a button, were expected to marque it easier for unit to acceptable up for events.

But the city's goal to more efficiently prepare for assemblage events remained retired of reach.

"They ne'er rather worked satisfactorily," said Hardy Bromberg, Cambridge's lawman metropolis manager for assemblage development.

"Maybe lone 3 quarters of [the bollards] would would emergence and different day, lone 2 of them. Sometimes each 8 [would rise] and sometimes not astatine all. That was a existent problem."

Bromberg says that's wherefore the metropolis decided not wage for the bollards, which outgo $130,000 The contented was taken to tribunal and determination was a ineligible settlement in 2021 with Service Door Industries, the shaper of the bollards, and Nex Industrial, the supplier.

Bromberg says the outgo to region the bollards and repave the roadworthy volition travel from the city's superior fund, and was not included successful the settlement. He estimates removal volition outgo the metropolis astir $20,000.

He says the metropolis volition beryllium utilizing portable barricades alternatively of the retractable bollards to artifact postulation during aboriginal events.

Bromberg says the bollards should beryllium gone by aboriginal fall.