Each winter, a layer of snow envelops various cities across the planet. While most view the snow as travel obstructions, a movement on social media has reconceptualized snowfall not only as a traffic concern but rather an indicator of poor urban design. Across Twitter, the hashtag #sneckdown is used <\/a>by people in the US, as well as other countries, to create a unified public that calls for the expansion of sidewalks and other public areas by documenting sections of the street where accumulated snow is left untouched by moving vehicles. In doing so, a unique community is formed – one that is simultaneously anchored in both physical and digital spaces as well as an opportunity for everyday citizens to participate in local beautification and traffic improvement efforts.<\/p>\n

Popularized by a 2011 documentary published on the blog Streetfilms<\/a>, the word sneckdown is a combination of \u201csnow\u201d and \u201cneckdown,\u201d a term used in urban planning to describe the curb extensions at intersections that reduce the roadway width from curb to curb. There are various advantages to neckdowns, particularly in opening up pedestrian foot traffic. The narrowing of roads around intersections also forces drivers to slow down while turning, thus adding safety benefits for pedestrians as well. Thus, a \u201csneckdown\u201d is a naturally-manifested neckdown that emerges out of the vehicle traffic occurring after snowstorms. The fallen snow acts as tracing paper, marking the path that cars travel on the road. More importantly, it reveals the parts of the road where cars are not <\/i>traveling – essentially wasted public spaces where sidewalks could be extended and medians could be built.<\/p>\n