Street Furniture - General Descriptions

General Descriptions

Street name signs identify streets for the benefit of visitors, especially postal workers and the emergency services. They may also indicate the district in which the street lies.

A bench is essentially a chair made for more than one person, usually found in central parts of settlements (such as plazas and parks). They are often provided by the local councils or contributors to serve as a place to rest and admire the view. Armrests in between are sometimes provided to discourage lying down and/or unwanted closeness.

Bollards are posts, short poles, or pillars with the purpose of preventing the movement of vehicles onto sidewalks or grass.

Post boxes, also known as mail boxes, are found throughout the world, and have a variety of form.

Phone boxes or telephone booths are prominent in most cities, and while ranging drastically in the amount of cover they offer users, e.g. many only cover the phone itself while others are full booths, are instantly recognisable. The widespread use of mobile phones has resulted in a decrease in their numbers.

Streetlamps are designed to illuminate the surrounding area at night, serving not only as a deterrent to criminals but more importantly to allow people to see where they're going. The colour of streetlamps' bulbs differ, but generally are white or yellow.

Traffic lights (or traffic signals) usually include three colours: green to represent "go", amber to inform drivers that the colour will alternate shortly, and red to tell drivers to stop. They are generally mounted on poles or gantries or hung from wires.

Traffic signs warn drivers of upcoming road conditions such as a "blind curve", speed limits, etc. Direction signs tell the reader the way to a location, although the sign's information can be represented in a variety of ways from that of a diagram to written instructions. Direction signs are usually mounted on poles. Recently, illumination has started to be added in order to aid nighttime users.

Public lavatories allow pedestrians the opportunity to use restroom facilities, either for free or for a fee.

Fire hydrants : fire service hook ups have a regional flare, or in the UK, buried in the street.

Poster Pole' : some cities like Berlin or Paris have dedicated poster towers.

Waste container, Litter Bin.

Emergency telephone box.

Street curbstones.

Paving stones, brick rosettes or granite cobbles, sometimes even wood.

Anti sit-lie dispositives : prevent people (i.e. homeless) to sit or lie.

Street furniture can be positioned to control overspill parking in addition to its primary purpose; for example a bench and a number of bollards may be used to block access to a sidewalk or verges for vehicles.