Man standing on 110 Freeway sign snarls traffic in Downtown Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (FOX 11) - A man who climbed atop a freeway sign to hang banners from an overpass of the southbound Harbor (110) Freeway in downtown Los Angeles, snarling traffic during Wednesday morning's rush-hour commute, has been taken into custody by police.

Firefighters were sent to the area of the 110 Freeway and Beaudry Avenue after the man was spotted about 8:25 a.m., the Los Angeles Fire Department reported. Giant air bags were deployed below the sign as a precaution.

The man jumped onto an air bag and was taken into custody at about 10 a.m., and authorities began the process of reopening the lanes.

The man's banners read ``fight pollution not each other,'' ``give a hoot, don't pollute,'' and -- written in graffiti type -- ``Dephre.''

As California Highway Patrol officers initially tried to take him into custody, the man -- apparently wearing only shorts -- gestured and posed as though he were an action hero.

The CHP closed the southbound 110 Freeway during the drama, plus the transition road from the southbound Hollywood (101) Freeway to the southbound 110 Freeway to limit traffic from entering the area.