Some active transportation advocates say snowfalls offer a road map for how Halifax can make its roadways safer for pedestrians, drivers and cyclists.

The thinking is that snowfalls offer visual clues to how pedestrians, cyclists and drivers use roadways because of the footprints and tracks they leave behind.

"When you go out in the winter time, it's actually a beautiful snapshot of what is actually possible and … how people are using space and also how space is being wasted in some cases on a lot of our roadways," said Kelsey Lane, the executive director of the Halifax Cycling Coalition.

Kelsey Lane, executive director of the Halifax Cycling Coalition, says sneckdowns offer great insight into how people are using roads and how space is wasted. (CBC)

What's left behind is known as a sneckdown, a word that's a blend of snow and neckdown, an urban planning term referring to a sidewalk that is extended to provide additional protection to pedestrians.

Sneckdowns have become a popular social media movement. Residents post photos of them after storms and there are even Twitter accounts dedicated to them, such as @sneckdownhfx and @sneckdownyyc.

Eliza Jackson, the sustainable transportation co-ordinator at the Ecology Action Centre, said sneckdowns reveal a lot about how intersections have been designed.

Another <a href="https://twitter.com/sneckdownhfx?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sneckdownhfx</a>: schoolzone with no sidewalk but many tiny footprints. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Sneckdown?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Sneckdown</a> shows space for sidewalk <a href="https://t.co/z1ErF2H0dv">pic.twitter.com/z1ErF2H0dv</a> —@HeyCornpusher

"It just really highlights that we've designed our streets incorrectly for the way people actually use them," she said.

She said traditional road design gives a lot of space to cars to make roadways safer, "but what we now know is the more space cars have, the faster they go and they're taking turns at higher speeds."

A sneckdown at the corners of Kaye and Gottingen streets in north-end Halifax. (Sneckdown Halifax/Facebook)

Jackson said sneckdowns show the benefits that would result from giving vehicles less space at some intersections, such as increasing the turning distance for vehicles, which would force them to slow down, and creating a safer space for pedestrians who would have less roadway to cross at intersections.

'A safer city for everyone'

"You get a traffic calming effect and that's good from anyone's perspective. It helps to slow down traffic and it creates a safer city for everyone, but it also helps to encourage a walking culture in Halifax," said Jackson.

She said if people see sneckdowns, they should take photos of them and post them to social media, as well as make their city councillors and planning staff aware of them.

<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Sneckdown?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Sneckdown</a> on Morris & Queen Street, Halifax. <a href="https://twitter.com/WalknRollHfx?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WalknRollHfx</a> <a href="https://t.co/cRZFfEwlij">pic.twitter.com/cRZFfEwlij</a> —@tjhfx

Lane said sneckdowns should be studied by city staff to make improvements to the roadways.

"I think opportunity is lost when we stick with the status quo and don't use these examples that we have in everyday life," she said.

What the city thinks about sneckdowns

City spokesperson Nick Ritcey cautions that sneckdowns may have some shortcomings in terms of the information they reveal.

"Sometimes roads are designed to accommodate larger vehicles that infrequently travel on these routes such as buses, waste management vehicles, fire trucks, delivery trucks, etc.," he said in a statement.

"Sneckdowns only capture a moment in time during snow clearing, so while these sections of road may not seem necessary at that time, they can be well utilized in certain situations."

Ritcey said the city's new integrated mobility plan directs staff to consider the level of service for pedestrians and could result in changes to streets and intersections during future planning.

"This might make intersections tighter and a little less comfortable for people in vehicles, but results in a greatly improved pedestrian environment. This would also likely reduce the sneckdown phenomenon," he said.