Skip to content

Infinite Jest

Here's a little back-to-school fun:

Here’s a little back-to-school fun:

With the help of an underground tunnel this group of 94 high school seniors from who-knows-where created a never-ending line of pedestrians crossing the street, not allowing a single car to pass for a full 15 minutes. Granted, it’s a bit man power-intensive but wow, is this ever an effective traffic-calming technique. At one point in the video above, a thrilled particpant says, “We are going to get in so much trouble for this!”

In addition to being a fine prank, this is pretty much exactly the same tactic that Transportation Alternatives and Downtown community members used in 1996 to launch what ultimately became the Downtown Brooklyn Traffic Calming Project. As an act of civil disobedience, a line of marchers ground traffic to a halt by walking in a continuous circle, filling all four crosswalks at a busy intersection during morning rush hour.

Via CollegeHumor.com

Photo of Aaron Naparstek
Aaron Naparstek is the founder and former editor-in-chief of Streetsblog. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Naparstek's journalism, advocacy and community organizing work has been instrumental in growing the bicycle network, removing motor vehicles from parks, and developing new public plazas, car-free streets and life-saving traffic-calming measures across all five boroughs. He was also one of the original cast members of the "War on Cars" podcast. You can find more of his work on his website.

Streetsblog has migrated to a new comment system. New commenters can register directly in the comments section of any article. Returning commenters: your previous comments and display name have been preserved, but you'll need to reclaim your account by clicking "Forgot your password?" on the sign-in form, entering your email, and following the verification link to set a new password — this is required because passwords could not be carried over during the migration. For questions, contact tips@streetsblog.org.

More from Streetsblog New York City

Crashes Went Down 15% In Harlem Trash Container Zone, As Mamdani Hawks Citywide Rollout

April 17, 2026

Woman Killed By Hit-and-Run Trucker in Ridgewood

April 17, 2026

Columbia Agrees to Fund 125th Street Subway Elevator — But Leaves MTA Holding the Bag

April 17, 2026

Waymo Means Way Mo’ Cars, According To Uber Docs

April 17, 2026
See all posts