Most school and ELC bollard work falls into three scenarios. Each has different specifications and a different compliance lens.
The pickup and drop-off zone is the busiest part of the school day. Kiss-and-drop lanes, kerb-side queues, and the stretch of path between the carpark and the school gate all carry heavy pedestrian traffic at the same moments drivers are distracted. Bollards here separate the path of travel from vehicle movement.
The carpark-to-playground boundary is where staff and visitor vehicles meet the outdoor learning space. Bollards at this boundary catch two scenarios: a vehicle leaving its parking bay and mounting the kerb, and children wandering from the playground into the carpark. An ELC licensed for children preschool age or under has separate fencing obligations under the National Quality Framework that bollards alone don't satisfy.
The front-of-building zone is the public-street frontage. For an inner-metro primary school on a main road, or an ELC on a busy commercial strip, this is where deliberate or accidental vehicle intrusion is a live risk. Bollards here are usually a larger diameter than the drop-off zone.
Car dealership security sits across two separate threats that call for different bollard configurations. The first is a ram-raid through the showroom frontage, where a vehicle is used to breach glass or a roller door so offenders can reach keys or display stock inside. The second is theft from the forecourt or yard, where a display vehicle is driven, towed, or lifted out of the outdoor display area without the showroom itself being breached.
| Application | Threat | Typical specification | Installation method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Showroom frontage | Ram-raid through glass or roller door | 140mm diameter, 5mm wall, concrete-filled | In-ground, minimum 600mm footing depth |
| Forecourt and yard perimeter | Unauthorised vehicle access, display stock theft | 90mm to 114mm diameter, 5mm wall | In-ground along boundary |
| Access gates and service entries | Need to permit staff vehicles during trading hours | Keyed removable, 90mm to 114mm diameter | Core-drilled socket with locking sleeve |
The mistake that keeps turning up on site walks is using a single bollard specification across the whole property. Forecourt perimeter bollards do not need to stop a ram-raid vehicle at speed; frontage bollards do.
Showroom glazing is the weak link regardless of how the frame around it is built. Modern automotive retail uses large-format glass for visibility, which means even a low-speed impact from a stolen ute or van is enough to breach the frontage. The bollard line is what stops the vehicle before it reaches the glass.
For ram-raid applications, the key specifications are:
Aesthetic considerations matter here more than they do on the forecourt. A dealership frontage is part of the brand. First Choice powder coats in dealership-branded colours, which means the bollard line can be finished to match signage, kerb paint, or manufacturer livery without any compromise on impact resistance.
A note on crash-tested ratings. Some sites (shopping centres, critical infrastructure) require bollards that have been independently crash-tested against a specified vehicle mass and speed. For most dealerships, the 140mm diameter, 5mm wall, concrete-filled, in-ground specification described above is a proportionate response to the actual threat profile. If your insurer or parent company requires a specific crash rating, raise it during the site assessment so the spec is right for your contract.
Forecourt protection addresses a different threat model. The risk here is a stolen vehicle being driven, towed, or lifted off the display area without the showroom being breached at all. The bollard layout has to restrict vehicle access to the yard while still allowing dealership staff to move stock in and out during trading hours.
Perimeter bollards along the property boundary are the foundation. Standard commercial specification is 90mm to 114mm diameter at 1.5 to 2 metre spacing, installed in-ground along the unfenced side of the forecourt. This is enough to stop a vehicle from being driven off and prevents a tow truck from reversing in close enough to hook a display car.
Access points are where the design gets site-specific. A corner-block dealership with two street frontages has different requirements to a linear site with a single driveway. Options include:
Keyed removable is the product most dealerships end up specifying for daily-use access. It is the same steel pipe as a permanent bollard, core-drilled into a locking sleeve, with a high-security key mechanism. Stock moves in and out without delay during trading, and the access point is closed in seconds at the end of the day.
Two touchpoints are worth raising early in the project rather than discovering them halfway through.
Commercial policies for automotive retailers commonly request documentation of anti-intrusion measures, and some brokers will discuss premium adjustments where physical security has been upgraded. Raise it with your broker before the installation rather than after: they will usually ask for bollard specifications, installation certificates, and photographs as part of the claim file. First Choice supplies installation documentation as standard. Whether a specific premium reduction applies is between the dealership and its insurer, and no bollard supplier can promise one on the insurer's behalf.
Dealerships on main-road frontage often sit with their property boundary close to the footpath line. Any bollard installation that encroaches on council-managed land (the road reserve, the footpath, or the nature strip) needs approval from the local council. In Victoria, this typically falls under a Road and Footpath Permit or equivalent local-law instrument. Timeframes vary by council; most ask for at least 10 business days between application and issue. The permit application generally requires a site plan showing bollard positions, dimensions, and proximity to kerb and property line. First Choice can provide the site plan, and the permit is the property owner's responsibility to lodge.
AS 2890.1, the Australian Standard for off-street parking, applies where the bollard installation sits inside a customer carpark and affects vehicle manoeuvring or pedestrian access. The standard references bollards as protective devices for kerbs, structural elements, doorways, and pedestrian pathways rather than prescribing specific ram-raid ratings. For the parts of the site that sit on private land, AS 2890.1 is the reference framework for placement and spacing around vehicle movement areas.
A site walk is the step that separates a workable design from one that gets rebuilt in year two. A dealership owner or general manager walking the site with a bollard installer can answer the questions that matter: where stock moves during trading hours, where the keys are held overnight, which glass panels face the most accessible frontage, and which sightlines the sales team needs to preserve.
First Choice installs dealership bollards across Melbourne and Geelong from the Sunshine North and North Geelong factories, with regular work along Melbourne's eastern auto strip. Dealerships specifying bollards for the first time often find the frontage and forecourt conversations need to happen separately, because the specifications and council implications are different. Starting with the frontage, where the ram-raid risk sits, is usually the right order.
Book a site assessment with First Choice Bollards to scope frontage and forecourt protection for your dealership. Call the Sunshine North or North Geelong factory directly, or request a quote online.
Great workmanship of their product - took pride in their work with installing them. Very happy, great product. Everyone should have them. Good investment.
Absolute legends to deal with. Were able to fit me in for an installation asap as we needed them done quickly.
We’ve worked with First Choice Bollards on multiple sites, and every time they’ve delivered exceptional results. From the initial consultation to the finished product the team is consistently professional, reliable and efficient.
Every application above uses standard, off-the-shelf bollard products. Residential jobs rarely need custom engineering. The difference between a bollard that works and one that creates a new problem is placement, spacing and choosing the right mounting method for the surface.
First Choice Bollards stocks removable, fold-down, fixed and lockable bollards suited to every residential application covered in this guide. Each product page includes dimensions, fixing details and surface compatibility so homeowners and property managers can match the bollard to the job before ordering.
Driveways, garage entrances, private parking bays and shared access ways are the most common residential bollard locations. Removable or lockable models suit homes where vehicle access needs change throughout the day.
Yes, but placement needs to account for all users. Bollards on shared driveways typically mark property boundaries or prevent encroachment while keeping the access path clear for every resident.
Fixed surface-mount bollards work well for protecting garage walls and door frames. Where vehicles need to pass close to the bollard, a shorter or folding model reduces the risk of contact while still guiding alignment.
Rules vary by council and state. Bollards on private property generally do not require approval, but installations near public footpaths, nature strips or shared boundaries may need a permit. Check with your local council before starting work.
