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infrastructure updates |
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New paint and repairs in Midway City Sunday, 18th May 2025 Scroll down for the update. |
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In the past week, the Orange County Public Works agency has been painting the kerbs of intersection corners red to increase intersection visibility by preventing drivers from parking too closely to the intersection. This concept is called “daylighting”. It’s a cheap and cost-effective solution that comes in haste after the California Legislature passed Assembly Bill n°. 413 last November, making it illegal to park less than 20 feet to an intersection even without red paint. These intersections have had their kerbs painted:
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Unmarked kerb (northwest corner of Harper and Roosevelt) 
Painted kerb (northwest corner of Harper and Madison) 
Painted kerb (southeast corner of Van Buren and Madison) |
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The kerbs at the intersection of Jackson and Madison were not painted, except for a small section beside a fire hydrant. This is intriguing because none of the other municipal fire hydrants in this neighbourhood did not have their adjacent kerbs painted. Furthermore, none of the intersections on Monroe Street had kerbs painted as well, presumably because they’re all-way stop intersections. Here are the other intersections that did not have their kerbs painted:
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Unmarked kerb beside fire hydrant on Van Buren 
Painted kerb beside fire hydrant on Jackson |
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There is always a concern that drivers will not comply with the new kerb paints. Non-compliance has never been new. It is not uncommon to see cars blocking fire hydrants and intersection corners in this neighbourhood. Some drivers here even stop in the middle of the street and simply throw their emergency signals on without trying to pull to the side to make space for passing cars (this is more of a rant and is a bit irrelevant). The non-compliance unfortunately occurs because Midway City the municipality of additional dwelling units. Almost every lot on Wilson Street between Madison Avenue and Bolsa Avenue either has ADUs or apartment buildings, causing that part of the area to become rather overcrowded and parking spaces to become scarce, leading to desperation derived from pure laziness. Regardless, drivers have been complying with the new paint thus far and it will hopefully remain that way. |
Non-compliance on Wilson Street |
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A preferred alternative to kerb painting is kerb extending. To implement this more effective alternative, the sidewalk is widened in a way that it “bulbs” out. In this case, it would bulb out to utilise the vacant space afront the red kerbs. This alternative is very effective because a physical obstacle is used to enforce the restriction. Think about it: what is the likelihood a driver will drive over a raised median to be able to turn left into their local Pavilions? Probably very little because the discomfort experienced and damage taken place on the car is not worth the effort and outcome. A criminal running from the police would be more likely to do that out of desperation. Because the sidewalk is widened, the road space is narrowed. This, of course, means the average driving speed is effectively reduced. Wider streets appear to be less constricted, and they really are. This gives drivers the mindset that they don’t need to be conscious about their path and speed on the street. Kerb extensions create the constriction that forces drivers to be more cautious about where they are on the road space and how fast they are going. Furthermore, kerb extensions reduce the distance required to fully cross the road and improve pedestrian visibility at the kerb. |
Kerb extensions on Lacy Street (Santa Ana, California) 
Road repair on Adams Street |
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Apart from the new kerb paint, other public works projects have been taking place in Midway City. On Adams Street between Washington Avenue and Madison Avenue, a small and square section of asphalt was taken out. Sidewalks are being repaired at four locations:
There was a green insect trap on one of the trees next to the sidewalk repair on Van Buren Street. No response from the Orange County Agricultural Commissioner regarding this insect trap was given. The trap identification number is MK574-12, and it was installed the 10th of May this year. |
Repair n°. 1 
Repair n°. 2 |
Repair n°. 3 
Repair n°. 4 (notice the green insect trap) |
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Update to this article Saturday, 22nd June 2025 |
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An entire month after contacting the Orange County Agricultural Commissioner, a response was finally received. Emily Hesselgrave, the Senior Agricultural Inspector, said the insect trap was deployed by the California Department of Food and Agriculture and to inquire of them about it instead. A response from the CDFA has not yet been received as of 22. June 2025. She also attached a guide by the Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office, which included pictures and details of different kinds of insect traps. The Spongy Moth trap looked most similar to the insect trap n°. MK574-12. It even has the paper clips that keep the trap lid shut. Spongy Moths did have an older name: Gypsy Moth. The Entomological Society of America materialised this name change in February of 2022 because the term „gypsy“ is considered derogatory and viewed offensive by Romani people. Why was the Spongy Moth trap deployed? Well, it’s because the beautiful ornamental tree caught the eyes of the agricultural workers. That’s according to the same insect trap guide. Spongy Moth larvae will defoliate and kill their host plants (source). The act of defoliating a plant is to destroy the leaves of a plant prematurely. In other news, the County of Orange (Midway City is unincorporated) has forbidden left turns from Monroe Street onto Bolsa Avenue between 0700H to 1900H. Why they couldn’t have just banned it entirely is beyond the conception of reality… Obviously because traffic isn’t as crazy outside these hours, but still. To enforce this new ordinance, signs were installed on the medians of Bolsa. It arguably isn’t the best spot for a regulatory sign (or any sign for that matter), but it’s still visible enough. A spot that would have made more sense for these signs is right under the stop sign, which is the sign that drivers will more likely look at. |
Close up front-shot of the trap 
Close up side-shot of the trap 
Southbound view of the intersection 
Close up shot of the new sign |
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© naertnahte 2025 |
