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Friday, March 9, 2012

Protecting the Sidewalks, in Midtown

Scaffolding, nyc
Photo by myself around 32nd Street and Fifth Avenue, in Midtown.

What looks like a haphazard pile of sticks will eventually become scaffolding.

Many of the sidewalks in the city are covered with scaffolding, as renovations and construction is being done. The scaffolding is to protect people walking on the sidewalk. This is a difficult idea to comprehend while walking on the sidewalk, since scaffolding often looks precarious.

The vertical supports sit on blocks of wood, which make the structure level. The blocks of wood aren't nailed together or anything - the scaffold is heavy and stiff enough to keep it from toppling over if ever bumped.

Wednesday night in fact, while walking under scaffolding, I saw a bus nearly tear its rear bumper off when it was snagged by one of the vertical supports. I heard a loud, metallic groan, and saw the bus shake.

The scaffolding? It did not move. Thank goodness.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Related posts: Going Up, Going Down, What's Going Up Near the ESB, and A Work in Progress, Midtown.

7 comments:

Andy said...

I'm retired and I like photos of people working.

s.c said...

Don't lose that photo. In time people will say "did they do it on that way". Love to see pictures of people working with their hands. Great shot.

Anonymous said...

And I thought it was kids playing at the playground.

K10 said...

LOL, Andy!!!

Leeds daily photo said...

I watched and chatted with a guy who has a local scaffolding company here in Leeds a few weeks back. It was interesting because I had never really given it much thought before. Well spotted Kitty.

Banjo52 said...

I'm with Paul. The myriad ways people make a living (and a contribution) fascinates me. And scaffolding vs. bus should be an action movie. How about "Runaway Scaffolding"?

But seriously, who knew scaffolding would stand up to that? Who's being praised because it did?

Rose ~ from Oz said...

Love those "people at work" shots. Lovely capture Kitty.