Q. Dear Honk: There were at least three exit signs along the southbound 73 Toll Road back in September that had been replaced with IDENTICAL signs located several feet away. These are at the Newport Coast Drive, Laguna Canyon Road and Greenfield Drive exits. BOTH sets of signs remained. Why replace what appeared to be perfectly good signs? How much did they cost? Why didn’t they remove the old signs at the same time? Leaving them in place only highlighted the apparent wastefulness and absurdity.

— Frank Mickadeit, Costa Mesa

A. Yes, he is that Frank, the wonderful former Orange County Register columnist who now works as a lawyer and sometimes hangs out with Honk.

The new signs are part of a $21.7 million project on the 73 to improve safety which also includes new barriers and guardrails.

Those signs cost $650 a pop and were replaced because they were peeling and losing their ability to reflect headlights, said Nathan Abler, a Caltrans spokesman.

“While the signs may have initially appeared to be in decent shape, they no longer met current safety standards,” he told Honk in an email.

Why did the pairs of signs stand side by side saying the same thing until taken down in early October?

Workers apparently came across a problem, after the new signs were installed, that took some time to solve.

Q. I read your most recent article regarding trash on freeways and was wondering what happened to the people wearing orange jumpsuits who used to pick up the trash on freeway shoulders. I believe they were assigned community service as a penalty for past transgressions.

— Gerard Dacut, Santa Ana

A. They still pay their debts to society on the freeway shoulders, Gerard.

“The Court Referral Program has been providing courts, probation departments and judicial officers with a viable option of community service as an alternative to fines and/or incarceration for misdemeanor offenders in Orange County,” Sheilah Fortenberry, a Caltrans spokeswoman, told Honk in an email.

“It is used seven days a week to remove litter and debris from state highways.”

HONKIN’ FACT: When a man couldn’t hitch a ride at a Stillwater gas station in September, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said he hopped into a pickup owned by an ambulance service and drove away; the pickup had been left running. A trooper caught the suspect walking into a Pawnee County courthouse and it became clear why the suspect needed a lift so bad: He was there to appear on an allegation of possession of a stolen vehicle.

To ask Honk questions, reach him at honk@ocregister.com. He only answers those that are published. To see Honk online: ocregister.com/tag/honk. To see him on the social media platform X: @OCRegisterHonk