Older Buildings Exempt From Handicap Rule

Dear Traffic Talk:

I recently visited a Chinese restaurant in Woodland Hills that did not designate any handicap parking spaces.

I thought all restaurants had to provide at least one parking space for the disabled.

Candice Vorhies

Woodland Hills

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Dear Candice:

Generally, restaurants do have to provide handicap parking.

However, Yang Chow restaurant in the 6400 block of Topanga Canyon Boulevard--and a number of other such businesses housed in older buildings citywide--is not required to, said T.K. Prime, a parking engineer with the Los Angeles Department of Transportation.

Legislation in the early 1980s required some businesses housed in buildings constructed after 1982 to provide handicap parking, Prime said. Buildings constructed before then, however, are not required to provide it.

The building where Yang Chow is housed was built in 1970, he said.

Dear Traffic Talk:

I wonder why there is no freeway connection from the southbound Hollywood Freeway to the westbound Ventura Freeway.

I asked today for a short way to make that connection and I was told to take the Riverside Drive exit, take the center lane, then make a left, go under the freeway and take a right on Tujunga Avenue to the freeway entrance.

That whole area, including the signage there, is very confusing to people trying to enter the freeways.

Cesar Pachon

North Hills

Dear Cesar:

Presently authorities say there are no plans to replace the exchange system between the southbound Hollywood Freeway and the northbound Ventura Freeway.

Caltrans says it is not confusing to make the transition by exiting at Riverside Drive and following street signs to the Ventura Freeway, said Pat Reid, an agency spokeswoman.

Engineers inspecting the area found there are sufficient, visible signs to lead drivers through the exchange, she said.

Also, for motorists traveling south on the 170 Freeway, who logically want to jump on the westbound 134 Freeway but become confused because the signs refer to the north 101:

It would not be appropriate to replace the “Northbound Route 101” signs with “Westbound 134,” according to authorities. At that point, there is no westbound 134.

The 134 Freeway ends as it crosses the 170 and instead merges with the northbound 101, which proceeds north, Reid said.

Dear Traffic Talk:

Why, when you’re driving on the freeways, does traffic slow to a crawl then start to pick up again, without any visible reason like an accident?

Robert Lark

Santa Clarita

Dear Robert:

There always are reasons for traffic slowdowns, although they may not always be apparent. The causes can range from debris on the roadway to an accident that has already been cleared, said officer Rob Lund, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol. Traffic is like a wave.

When there is a slowdown at a particular point, the delay continues sometimes long after the hazard has been removed, Lund said.

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