As part of a new school zone scheme in Dublin, safe travelling environments have been implemented for children and families accessing school premises. Dublin City Council in collaboration with the National Transport Authority and Designers, Green Schools, developed this initiative to discourage traffic and prevent illegal parking in school vicinities around Dublin.

Marshalls Landscape Protection worked closely alongside Irish partner Shergan Traffic Solutions Ltd to deliver the scheme, providing pencil-shaped bollards to demarcate the ‘no idling’ zones. Now a permanent fixture in various locations, the design is set to roll out across 80 schools in total.

The scheme came about as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the idea that specially introduced zones would free up space around the schools, allowing people to commute to the grounds safely by foot or bike. While also helping to reduce and manage the level of vehicular air pollution, the ‘school zones’ encourage an active approach to travelling, in turn having a positive impact on people's health and wellbeing and contributing towards a cleaner and greener environment.

Manufactured with a durable Ferrocast® polyurethane material, the PiPencil bollard is ideal for urban settings and offers a fun and innovative approach to pedestrian and vehicular demarcation. The high-quality Ferrocast® is cast around an internal steel core for increased strength, and the robust material performs in the toughest environments, minimising on-going-maintenance and long-term upkeep costs.

The bright and quirky design of the pencil-shaped bollard is available in a number of colours, and it can be tied into school branding and colour schemes, offering the perfect safety feature for use outside education institutions.

Rhode National School teacher Deirdre Fay said: "The new school zones have played a vital part in effectively reducing school congestion, and the fun and creative design of the PiPencil bollard lends itself well to the scheme, assisting to create a calmer, safer and fun environment at the entrance of the schools."