  Huerta et al. [Phys. Rev. Research 2, 033351 (2020)] report a power-law decay
of positional order in numerical simulations of hard disks confined within hard
parallel walls, which they interpret as a Kosterlitz-Thouless-type
caging-uncaging transition. The proposed existence of such a transition in a
quasi-one-dimensional (q1D) system, however, contradicts long-held physical
expectations. To clarify if the proposed ordering persists in the thermodynamic
limit, we introduce an exact transfer matrix approach to expeditiously generate
equilibrium configurations for systems of arbitrary size. The power-law decay
of positional order is found to extend only over finite distances. We conclude
that the numerical simulation results reported are associated with a crossover,
and not a proper thermodynamic phase transition.
