Replacing damaged or fallen freeway signs can take months

Q What is Cal trans’ approach to replacing freeway signs that are knocked down or damaged? It appears that signs are not repaired or removed and seldom replaced. A sign knocked down on southbound Highway 101 at East Dunne Avenue has been lying on the ground for months.

— Richard Buikema, Morgan Hill

A This is a problem even in the best of times. Caltrans keeps a low inventory of replacement signs and it can take weeks or even months to get a new sign ordered. Toss in COVID-19 and the delay can take much longer.

Q Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Dr. Anthony Fauci have made very clear that it’s difficult to catch COVID-19 outdoors with masks and proper social distancing. So closing benches and taking away trail maps is moronic, doing much more public harm than good.

With the vast, open space at Año Nuevo State Park, why the hell do they have the preserve and elephant seal viewing area closed?

Ski resorts are open. Golf courses are open. So why is Año Nuevo closed? This stupid, draconian lockdown accomplishes nothing.

We need recreation and time out with our families, fresh air, exercise, appreciation of our beautiful state.

Tell the governor to open these damn parks and recreation areas.

— Shirley Yeh, Mountain View A Whoa, calm down. Año Nuevo State Park is temporarily affected by COVID-19 closures.

If you really want to see elephant seals, go to Piedras Blancas, a beach area 5 miles north of Hearst Castle near the Monterey-San Luis Obispo County line. You can see them there from the parking lot.

Go to elephantseal.org for more information.

Q Having several comorbidities, one of them being my age, I have limited myself to only essential trips to stores and have essentially quarantined since March. I have probably driven under 50 miles during this time of the pandemic and have only topped off the gas tank once, just in case I had to make a long road trip in search of toilet paper.

Now I get a notice that I have to get a smog check. Who do I contact in the governor’s office to petition them to waive smog checks for those of us with medical conditions, including being over 65, especially now during these extreme conditions?

Only 11% of the California population is over 65, and we probably account for much less than that in emissions (well, at least auto emissions), so a waiver would do very little harm.

— Joe Rich, Santa Clara

A Pay your registration fee now and get it smogged later when you feel it is safe to do so.