Q. Hi Honk: There is a thin wire strung between several metal poles about 30 to 40 yards apart in the median of University Drive in Irvine that goes from Harvard Avenue to Culver Drive. What is that wire’s purpose?
– Brent Sandberg, Irvine
A. You likely saw part of what is called an eruv, which in Irvine runs along the side of the 405 Freeway, to University Drive, to Harvard Avenue and back up to near the freeway to create a border in the shape of perhaps a shoe.
Approved by the City Council in 2004, it is maintained by the Beth Jacob Congregation of Irvine, which is inside the border along with apartment complexes and single-family homes.
“We work closely with the city,” said Ilan Wolf, on the congregation’s board of directors, referring to a permit and the ability to hire a company to repair the line if needed.
In Irvine, 100-pound fishing line, a berm and walls create the eruv.
Inside the eruv, some people of the Jewish faith can do things that are otherwise usually forbidden on the Sabbath in public areas. For example, they can carry items or push a stroller or a wheelchair.
Eruv districts have been in place for 2,500 years. Among the communities where an eruv has been created is in Long Beach’s Bixby Knolls neighborhood.
Q. Do you know why when going northbound on the 241 Toll Road there is a long barrier between the lanes leading to the transition to go either west or east on the 91 Freeway? You can’t switch lanes if you find that you are taking the wrong exit.
– Mike Wick, Lake Forest
A. At certain times of the day, a lot more motorists want to go east there rather than west. So the Riverside-bound lanes – there are two for each direction – would clog up more than those depositing drivers to the west.
“Adding to the bumper-to-bumper frustration were queue jumpers – drivers who attempted to bypass the congestion by driving in the left two lanes only to cut in at the last minute,” explained Eugene Fields, a spokesman for the…
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