Tuesday, February 15, 2011

All the rage

According to an article in the Personal Journal section of today's Wall Street Journal (side note: has there ever been a publication more obsessed with self-reference? The NY Times doesn't even call their sports section Sports Times.) pedestrian rage - the "road rage" of sidewalk travel - is real and gripping the nation. According to U Hawaii psychologist Leon James, signs of a sidewalk rager include muttering or bumping into others; uncaringly hogging a walking lane; and acting in a hostile manner by staring, giving a "mean face" or approaching others too closely. The full article is available here.

Below, a guide of who to avoid and who to potentially follow if in a hurry or prone to rage whilst walking the streets of NYC. Thanks to NYC's Department of City Planning and their April 2006 study 'Pedestrian Level of Service Study, Phase I' for this invaluable data.



Key: 1. Tourists walk 3.79 feet per second; 2. Smokers: 4.17 feet per second; 3. Cellphone users: 4.20 feet per second; 4. Headphone listeners: 4.64 feet per second; 5. Large pedestrians: 3.74 feet per second; 6. Men: 4.42 feet per second; 7. Women: 4.10 feet per second; 8. People with bags: 4.27 feet per second

Thanks to LtGen Perez, Ret. USMC for the look...
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3 comments:

  1. SnipesFebruary 15, 2011 at 4:21 PM

    Very interesting. According to this article, I definitely have sidewalk rage and so do most of my friends. I'm certainly guilty of physically making my presence known to people going three abreast across a narrow footbridge even after shouting, "on your left!" Some people just don't get it or are just clueless or inconsiderate. (cough berkleeschoolofmusicstudents.)

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  2. PhilFebruary 15, 2011 at 5:26 PM

    I too am a classic rage walker...no physical contact but shitloads of disdain

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  3. CrashFebruary 16, 2011 at 1:21 PM

    Phil and I recently had lunch on the campus of a Cambridge, MA university, and boy did we exhibit some good old-fashioned sidewalk AND college hallway rage.

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