This is a weird thought I had yesterday while driving around West Wales: who decides where benches are placed, particularly those around the countryside?
One of the benches I came across today
I hadn’t really noticed before but when you go on a public walk, someone will have kindly placed a few benches along the way for you to rest your tired legs on.
Lady resting on a bench in Ellesmere
Later on yesterday, after I had the initial weird thought, we were driving back to our base along a busy main road, and I saw a public bench left looking rather forlorn on a busy t-junction. This got me wondering in particular about who made the decision to put a bench there. And how often was it sat upon? It didn’t seem to be a place by which many pedestrians would pass.
A very photogenic cat having a rest on a bench
Ever since I’ve had this weird thought, I’ve been spotting benches, everywhere. They really are everywhere you go. You can’t walk more than 200 meters without having the opportunity for a sit down.
A bench I sat on today at Devil’s Bridge
So, do people have meetings to decide where to put these public benches? Do they pore over a map, with pins in their hands? Do they have to come to a consensus before a bench is officially placed? I’ve never seen a bench being placed so do they do it at night while we are all sleeping? Can a bench be moved if it transpires that nobody sits on it because it isn’t quite in the right location?
I have so many questions and a need to find some answers.
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