Hans Town 1819...

Here we have a Hans Town bollard which can be found on Pavilion Road SW3 and dotted around the surrounding area of Sloane Street. But what was Hans Town ? It turns out to be a grand 18th century suburb of London owned by Sir Hans Sloane who was a benefactor to Chelsea like no other even by today's standard. Today Hans Town is an electoral ward of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

So here is a bollard dedicated to an area and a man who left his mark on London and probably created the most beautiful residential area the capital has to offer the very wealthy.

The bollard itself is white in colour solid in construction with three rings, two nearer the cannon ball top and the words "Hans Town 1819" on the side (if a column can have a side). Note the base is different and cubed in shape when compared to most modern bollards.

Well I'm off to work and Hans Town 2009 here I come...

Spot the Difference...

Can you spot the differ-ence here between our two zebra stripped bollards. Well if you turn into Fentiman Road from Clapham road you'll notice these two bollards on the left hand side protecting the sloped pavement whilst one of them is so close to a lamp post it is almost redundant.

In a time when we are wondering how to save money and improve the public finances surely the time has come to scrap the madness of street furniture and only plant what is actually necessary on the pavements and the roads.

Now whilst we may compare these two bollards for they are different in shape notice the tops. One looks like you could juice an orange upon it the other looks like a cannon ball has been tacked into place.

Curved Column of St Paul's Bollards...

Polished, stone/granite bollards guarding the paved area immediately outside the front of St Paul's Cathedral. In fact they look like a group of extras for an episode of Dr Who or a set of pawns for a game of giant chess.

Taking a closer look these are cylindrical bollards with a grove topped with a what can only be described as a stone from a curling match. These bollards though are here to keep vehicles away from the front of St Paul's which is a view and pedestrianised area that is worth keeping free of vehicles.

So yet again the City of London chucks up a different class and style of bollard and I can only say I'm sure their are plenty more...

St Pancras International Bollards...

Here we are at the Eurostar taxi-cab rank and just look at the line of bollards, they are over sized and made of stainless steel but why have we bollards here ?

Well this is more than likely a security measure for the new St Pancras International terminal is partly made of glass and you'll notice the bollards protect the entrances/exits from the station. Having said that I'm also sitting on the taxi-cab rank thinking we (the taxi-cabs) are the wrong side of the bollards.

So if you happen to be travelling to or from Europe via Eurostar spend a moment or two having a look at the rather bland but clean modern bollards of St Pancras International...