The Joy of Jaywalking

The average New Yorker jaywalks about 10 times a day. In its most legaliest definition, “jaywalking” covers any crossing against the light. But if you live in the city, you don’t wait for the light. If you want to cross, step out about three feet into the intersection, and wait for enough space between cars to make it. Don’t tailgate local jaywalkers, out-of-towners: We only gauge the crossing safety potential for ourselves, not for the person behind us.

The New Yorker definition of a jaywalker is someone who walks diagonally from one corner to the other against the light, traffic be damned. Not to discourage any intrepid jaywalkers, but this can actually be risky sometimes. Apparently, cars often hit people crossing the roads under the elevated trains in Queens. Recently, a man was hit by a car in Queens, and a passing van’s bottom plate latched on to his unconscious body. He was dragged around for hours before police found his corpse, sans large portions of skin, some tattered clothes, and a mostly intact iPhone. Apart from being buried alive, I can’t think of a worse way to go.