One way spikes vs entry barrier systems

The age old debate of when is it more viable to fit an automatic barrier as opposed to fitting a set of flow plates or one way traffic spikes? In many instances it is necessary to control the flow of traffic, this may be for health and safety reasons, town planning requirements, facility improvement or an effort to keep pesky traffic under control.

It is important to consider the pros and cons when making the decision of which system to fit, barriers or flow plates? We have listed what I believe to be an honest set of pro’s and then negatives in this debate.

Pro Barriers:

1. Controlled access
2. They offer heightened security
3. They slow traffic down

Negatives for Barriers:

1. They require regular maintenance
2. Barriers can cause traffic delays (it takes around 20 seconds to open and close) This can cause traffic jams in peak periods typically such as at schools when you have peaks and troughs in traffic patterns.
3. They are expensive to fit with not only ground works being required and the need for specialist electrical wiring but they also require specialist servicing.
4. They need to have someone on site to manually override them when they do go wrong.
5. They are noisy

So why would you choose a flow plate or one way ramp over an automatic barrier then? Well flow plates or one way ramps offer the following benefits.

1. They are cheap to fit
2. The initial £ outlay is less than that of a barrier
3. They require far less maintenance
4. They slow traffic down
5. Flow plates can be made to have a silent operation
6. One way ramps act not only as directional traffic measures but also as traffic calming.
7. Once they are fitted, that’s it! Forget about them and leave then to do there job, there are no costly servicing bills, no need for electricians and costly service engineers.