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City streets were once public space; a place for pedestrians, pushcart vendors, horse-drawn vehicles, streetcars, and children at play.
In the 1920s with the spread of cars, the number of people killed by cars skyrocketed.
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Some cities even demanded that manufacturers put devices on vehicles to limit their speeds in city environs.
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This strategy also explains the name that was given to crossing illegally on foot: jaywalking. During this era, the word "jay" meant something like "rube" or "hick" — a person from the sticks, who didn't know how to behave in a city. So pro-auto groups promoted use of the word "jay walker" as someone who didn't know how to walk in a city, threatening public safety.
At first, the term was seen as offensive, even shocking. Pedestrians fired back, calling dangerous driving "jay driving."
Much more with pictures @ The forgotten history of how automakers invented the crime of "jaywalking" - Vox - Pocket