Sneckdown

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A sneckdown on a corner in Allston, Massachusetts, United States Corner sneckdown.jpg
A sneckdown on a corner in Allston, Massachusetts, United States
Sneckdown showing a triangle of less used road space on a T-intersection in Sofia Sneckdown in Sofia, 2017-01-19 - highlight.jpg
Sneckdown showing a triangle of less used road space on a T-intersection in Sofia

A sneckdown (or snowy neckdown) is a temporary curb extension caused by snowfall, where snow has built up in the road but not been flattened by traffic, effectively reshaping the curb. Sneckdowns show how the space is being used by vehicle and foot traffic, and may reveal points where a street could be usefully narrowed with neckdowns to slow motor vehicle speeds and shorten pedestrian crossing distances. [1]

Contents

History

The term "sneckdown" was coined by Streetsblog founder Aaron Naparstek in 2014, [2] [3] popularized by Streetfilms director Clarence Eckerson, Jr. and spread widely via social media. [4] Other Twitter hashtags that have been used to describe snow-based traffic-calming measures include #plowza, #slushdown, #snovered and #snowspace. [5]

The practice of using snow to trace the behavior of vehicles, pedestrians, and playing children was already described in Camillo Sitte's 1901 urban design treatise. [6]

In the 1980s, some planners in Australia distributed cake flour in intersections to observe patterns of vehicle movement hours later. [5]

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States at Baltimore and 48th Street, a sneckdown-inspired permanent upgrade to the pedestrian environment was made in 2011. [7]

See also

References

  1. "What snow can teach us about street design". www.bbc.com. 13 March 2025.
  2. "Aaron Naparstek". Twitter. Archived from the original on 16 March 2025.
  3. "Natural traffic control". The Economist. 13 February 2014.
  4. "Streetfilms - The Complete Origin of the #Sneckdown".
  5. 1 2 "Sneckdowns: Using Snow Pileup to Design Better Streets - New York YIMBY". New York YIMBY. 29 January 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  6. Sitte, Camillo (1901). Der Städtebau Nach Seinen Künstlerischen Grundsätzen[City planning according to artistic principles]. Vienna: Graeser.
  7. "Can Snow Inspire Better Streets? It Already Has". Streetsblog USA. 11 February 2014.