For South County Commuters, There’s No Easy Way Out : Transportation: The partial closure of Laguna Canyon Road is made worse by traffic-scrunching roadwork on alternative routes.

As if the partial shutdown of Laguna Canyon Road was not a sufficient test of patience, South County commuters have discovered in the past few days that their options are limited on practically all sides.

Roadwork on Coast Highway at the north end of the city and the installation of water and sewer lines on the same highway in Corona del Mar have scrunched traffic everywhere.

Flood-battered Laguna Canyon Road remained open in one direction only during peak traffic hours Wednesday, but transportation officials had no word on when traffic would return to normal.

The road, which carries about 100,000 cars each day, was scheduled to reopen in both directions at 4 p.m. Wednesday. But with storm clouds threatening, transportation officials backed down.

“They came to the conclusion there was just too much water, and they don’t want to risk any danger to motorists,” said Gerard Sandoval, a spokesman for the California Department of Transportation. “There is no word as to when it will reopen. I guess what we’re doing is playing it by ear and hoping that the water will recede.”

Forecasters said Wednesday that the Pacific storm expected to hit Orange and Los Angeles counties has lost a lot of its power and was turning south, increasing the potential for heavy showers in San Diego County and Arizona.

“This is still a significant storm--pretty vigorous,” said Rick Dittmann, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times. But its turn south is “good news because the ground is pretty saturated . . . and it could have done significant damage.”

Orange County can expect mostly cloudy skies today with a 60% chance of rain, but the accumulated amounts are expected to be only about one-half inch, far less than the three inches that had been forecast for some areas. Highs are expected to be in the mid-60s, and lows will be in the upper 40s to low 50s.

Laguna Canyon Road first flooded Friday night, when small lakes on both sides of it overflowed and ran together. At times, the road was flooded with up to two feet of water.

On Monday, about five miles of the road between El Toro Road and the San Diego Freeway were shut down as crews dug trenches, pumped out water, installed sandbags and repaired potholes.

“What really frustrates people is they can’t come down Laguna Canyon Road and if they take the other route (MacArthur Boulevard south to Coast Highway) they end up backed up in one lane for miles,” said Laguna Beach resident Amy McCurdy, who normally drives through the canyon daily. “It’s caused a huge backup of traffic for commuters. It’s a real mess.”

Mary Kate Mahoney, a Newport Beach physical therapist who now needs 30 minutes more to get home to Laguna Beach each evening, called the situation “terrible.”

“It’s blocked most nights from Five Crowns (restaurant) to Crystal Cove,” she said, a distance of about three miles.

Some drivers have tried to outsmart others, avoiding the Corona del Mar congestion by catching the newly opened Newport Coast Drive and turning south onto Coast Highway toward Laguna Beach. But brake lights flash near Emerald Bay, just north of Laguna Beach, where a project to install gas lines will keep one southbound Coast Highway lane closed until June 15.

The roadwork in Corona del Mar also is expected to continue until mid-June.

Entering Laguna Beach from Laguna Canyon is even trickier, as thousands of drivers who have crowded onto El Toro Road, an alternative path from Interstate 5, have discovered.

“On Monday, there was just a massive jam-up on El Toro Road,” Laguna Beach City Manager Kenneth C. Frank said. “I’m surprised more people from Dana Point don’t go down Crown Valley (Parkway) for a while, but of course the freeway is a mess. . . .”

Beginning Tuesday evening, Laguna Canyon Road was reopened in one direction during peak traffic hours.

“It’s a real problem,” said Terry Brandt, the city’s municipal services director. “If the rains abate for a while and we don’t get (another storm) it’s possible we could have it open. But we just don’t know.”

The Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce manager said she has fielded many calls from frustrated commuters regarding the condition of the soggy roadway. But Brandt said he thinks most people are keeping their irritation in check.

“I think people understand the problem, they see us out there working on it,” he said. “I think we’re starting to make some progress now.”