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Go big or go home - Gion Festival. The bigger floats (like this one) are skid steer things. People walk alongside them and shove chocks under the front wheel to skid it in the required direction. At points in teh parade where they need to turn 90 degrees there are rush mats on the road surface to make the turning easier. Many of the floats are rather old.
When the parade takes place a lot of traffic signals need to be removed -- the parade is followed by a team that restores the signals so that the roads can be reopened PDQ.
