Artist whose DIY freeway sign helped millions of LA drivers had motorists convinced it was real

A Los Angeles artist created a fake road sign that was so convincing and useful that it fooled drivers – and ended up staying in place for years. 

The need for the fake sign came from a confusing stretch of the 110 freeway through the LA basin from Long Beach to Pasadena. 

The highway intersects with several major freeways, including the I-5, but those hoping to exit to 1-5 North from 110 North often missed their turn-off. 

The exit itself is a small tunnel that’s tucked away off to the side and was incredibly easy to miss back in 2001 because there was no signage. 

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The original sign left many drivers confused

Step up artist and sign-maker Richard Ankrom, who decided to perform a ‘guerrilla act of public service’ that went on to help countless drivers. 

Ankrom first came up with the idea of being one of the many frustrated drivers he’d go on to help. 

“I used to live in Orange County and had gotten lost because it wasn’t adequately signed,” he told ABC7. 

“That’s when it clicked: “I’m a sign guy – I could do this.”

Ankrom then set about carefully and expertly crafting his own that included the ‘Interstate 5’ shield emblem but – crucially – added the word ‘North’.

To ensure it looked like the real deal, he spent around three months researching colors, shapes, and fonts – with the resulting piece of work looking nearly identical to something made by the California Department of Transportation. 

It remained in place for years with no one suspecting a thing

When it come to getting his handiwork into position, Ankrom simply donned a high-visibility jacket and a hard hat so any motorists passing by would simply assume he was a transportation worker.

Smart right?

Once in place, the homemade North road sign looked so realistic that it stayed in place for years, helping potentially millions of drivers. 

Because despite the sheer volume of traffic on the freeway, no one suspected a thing and just assumed the DIY job was legit.

In fact, the truth didn’t come out until many months later when Ankrom leaked the story to the press. 

It seems he did such a decent job that the Transportation Department didn’t remove it until 2009.

The California Department of Transportation then finally replaced it with one of its own – that looks a helluva lot like the one Ankrom made.