Pavement Build-Outs. What are they?
Well, Build-Outs are a modern device to help pedestrians get across our car-dominated streets. They generally take away road space and give it pedestrians. They are an invention of Traffic Engineers.
Traffic Engineers don't like trees near junctions. They like stuff called Traffic. Otherwise they wouldn't be Traffic Engineers. Obviously. So they don't think about trees. Just Traffic.
Bristol City Council Parks Department don't think about Traffic or Build-Outs. Unless they are told by 'the public' that Traffic Engineers are designing Build-Outs. In Bristol. And unless 'the public' suggest to them that they might put trees in the Build-Outs.
But this makes the Parks Department look stupid.
After all, the world is clamouring for joined-up-thinking, but Bristol City Council's Parks Department (who manage trees in streets) can't talk to the Traffic Department (who manage streets with trees). So the Parks Department may look stupid when someone points out an opportunity to plant a new street tree in a new Build-Out. Why hadn't they thought of that? Oops.
Anyway, it takes a while, but eventually it is possible to get a few trees into build-outs. The Parks Department will resist, of course, as it means work, surveys, excuses and consultation. It may even mean looking through books of trees to find the least appropriate species for a chosen spot.
So, they plant...
A Ginkgo.
We are always impressed.
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