Critical safety bollard removed and needs to be reinstated

A few weeks ago, a lorry hit a bollard on the corner of Church Street and Old Town. The bollard is one of a number that perform a critical role in protecting pedestrians and properties from careless driving - they were installed precisely because this is an issue at this junction. The bollards perform their role admirably and are fairly regularly hit - this one was hit a few weeks ago but on this occasion, rather than being reseated in the pavement, the contractor had removed the bollard entirely. We have contacted the council who have requested we raise this on FixMyStreet for highways to send out a safety officer and confirm the issue.

To confirm, had the bollard not been there on the most recent occasion, anyone on the pavement would have been hit by the HGV who caught it during a careless turning manoeuvre.

This needs to be reinstated asap.

Photo of the bollard before and the “repair” after attached.

Note that the bollard was left leaning at a slight angle after the most recent incident but was perfectly untouched and functional, and there was no reason for its removal. Given the value in the bollard, I hope the contractor can account for it and return it or otherwise explain why they have disposed of it as there are concerns it may have been “weighed in” for profit. The picture attached of the bollard is the bollard after it was hit - it was perfect.

A video of the incident is available upon request.