What does the "J" stand for in the term "J-Walking"?

Question

I always thought it stood for "Jerk" but then I J-Walk a lot and I'm not a Jerk. :)

Answer 1

Supposedly when the automobile was introduced, many people could not afford one. These people were usually from rural areas and not from the city. There was a term called a Jay for people who were rather simple, hickish, or just not cultured. They were unfamiliar with the laws and the ways of the big city. When they would cross the road without considering the cars or laws, the police would say, "There is a Jay-walker."

Answer 2

It's "jaywalking" not "J-walking"

As for the etymology Wikipedia says this:

"jay" refers to a foolish rural person—a rube—unfamiliar with city ways.  

Answer 3

According to one historian, the earliest known use of the word jaywalker in print was in the Chicago Tribune in 1909.[1] (The earliest citation in the Oxford English Dictionary is from 1917.) The term's dissemination was due in part to a deliberate effort by promoters of automobiles, such as local auto clubs and dealers, to redefine streets as places where pedestrians do not belong.[2] It is a compound word of the words jay and walk; "jay" refers to a foolish rural person—a rube—unfamiliar with city ways. No historical evidence supports an alternative folk etymology by which the word is traced to the letter "J" (characterizing the route a jaywalker follows).