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What is a Sneckdown?
- phsnewspaper.com
- 2 days ago
- 1 min read
By Isabella Pena
A “sneckdown” is a term sometimes used in infrastructure, civil engineering, and other similar areas like urban planning. It’s a combination of the terms “neckdown” and snow, also thought to have different origins in Irish culture, like the Gaelic word for snow (sneachta).
The basic explanation of what a sneckdown is: “a buildup of snow on a road that has not been flattened and cleared by traffic, particularly at an intersection.” (Wikipedia). The reason why it is occasionally a relevant term in urban planning and infrastructure, but not much elsewhere, is that the snow acts as an outline for where cars use the road most. This shines light on areas that are potential areas for traffic calming measures, or a way to slow down the busy and sometimes fast-paced speed of traffic, especially in city areas where the road is close to people.
Sneckdowns are not perfect because they are usually temporary and cannot show more accurate usage of the road over long periods of time, especially by different kinds of vehicles. Generally, the paths and sneckdowns left after a snowstorm are paved by your average person’s car, not special cases like firetrucks, ambulances, or semi-trucks.
But despite their flaws, sneckdowns are still paid attention to and on occasion, utilized as inspiration for infrastructure improvement due to the increase in pedestrian safety it can bring by: forcing cars to slow down around corners, giving walkers or less bulky modes of transport (bikes, scooters, skateboards…) more room to freely travel, and increase driver awareness by decreasing the comfort of normal multi-lane roads.
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