Traffic Calming Animation of the Day: The Chicane
In the shortest, sweetest Streetfilm ever, a 24-second stop-motion animation, Elizabeth Press perfectly illustrates a chicane which is a sequence of bump-outs that force drivers to slow down and drive a more circuitous route along a straight, wide street. An added side benefit, chicanes also create more sidewalk space to be used for benches, tables, plantings and street furniture.
By
Jason Varone
12:30 PM EST on January 17, 2008
In the shortest, sweetest Streetfilm ever, a 24-second stop-motion animation, Elizabeth Press perfectly illustrates a chicane which is a sequence of bump-outs that force drivers to slow down and drive a more circuitous route along a straight, wide street. An added side benefit, chicanes also create more sidewalk space to be used for benches, tables, plantings and street furniture.
The word chicane comes from the German word schikane, meaning harassment.
Project for Public Spaces has more on chicanes and various other traffic calming techniques.
Jason Varone battles the streets everyday during a 9 mile commute on his bicycle from downtown Brooklyn to the Upper East Side. In addition to his efforts on Streetsblog, he is an artist making work related to the environment and technology. Examples of his work can be found at www.varonearts.org.
Read More:
More from Streetsblog New York City
DOT’s Greenpoint Greenway Project Doesn’t Dream Big Enough
Greenpoint residents don't want the bike lanes from 2010.
April 1, 2026
Crash Victims, Lawmakers To Hochul: ‘We Have A Better Idea To Reform Car Insurance’
Lawmakers think that there are savings to be found in how insurers set car insurance rates, rather than litigation costs.
April 1, 2026
Wednesday’s Headlines: We 404’d The Times Edition
The Gray Lady dissed us, so we played a trick on her. Plus other news on this April Fool's Day.
April 1, 2026
PLAZA SWEET: Mamdani To Convert Streets Into Rome-Style ‘Piazzas,’ Starting in Paladino and Ariola’s Districts
"How could they object to bringing one of the best things about Italy to New York?" a city source told Streetsblog.
April 1, 2026
Council Members Form ‘DRIVE Caucus’ To Advocate for Cheaper and Easier Driving
Finally, car owners will have a counterweight to bike-lane and transit advocates.
April 1, 2026
Comments Are Temporarily Disabled
Streetsblog is in the process of migrating our commenting system. During this transition, commenting is temporarily unavailable.
Once the migration is complete, you will be able to log back in and will have full access to your comment history. We appreciate your patience and look forward to having you back in the conversation soon.