Mud Still Clogs Area’s Roadways

The handmade cardboard appeal was stuck above the pile of dirt blocking one side of Echo Park Boulevard: “Call Eric Garcetti to Clean This Up!!!”

The sign naming the City Council member aptly sums up the frustration of motorists still coping with the remnants of storms that dumped heavy rains on the region several weeks ago.

Mud, debris and unstable soil and pavement have left many thoroughfares across the Southland closed or partly blocked, adding to drivers’ headaches.

The most seriously damaged roads, through the canyons and along the coast, will remain closed for weeks or months.

In far more places, smaller piles of mud and debris have substantially slowed traffic, cutting off lanes or ramps. City, state and county officials say it’s been all they can do to keep up.

“We are responding as fast as possible to requests,” said Cora Jackson Fossett, a spokeswoman for the L.A. Department of Public Works. As of early March, she said, the department’s 98 workers in 12 crews had cleared 424 “washouts,” removed 524 trees or limbs and repaired 25,918 potholes.

Even before the storms, about 4,000 of the city’s 6,500 miles of roadway needed to be resurfaced and 900 needed full reconstruction, Fossett said. “We know it would cost about $1.5 billion to bring all these streets up to code.”

Asked if the city were short-handed, Fossett said, “I’m not going to say that. We’re utilizing the resources we have as fast and efficiently as possible. The city is 450 square miles. It’s very long and very wide. I don’t know that you could ever have enough people. And the sidewalks are twice as many miles.”

Mayor James K. Hahn’s office estimates storm repairs at more than $117 million, including $91 million for work on public property, $14 million for private homes or structures and more than $12 million to retaining walls and ramps.

Among the worst hit is Laurel Canyon Boulevard, where a huge slope failure has reduced lanes to one in each direction in several spots along the heavily traveled link between Hollywood and the Valley.

A sinkhole that took out 200 feet of Tujunga Avenue in Sun Valley will not be repaired until the end of May or June, Fossett said. “We’re trying to let the rainy season pass” before fixing it, she said, “because we don’t want them to recur.”

In Malibu, the California Department of Transportation, which handles repairs of state roads, began removing thousands of cubic yards of dirt from private property that imperiled the Pacific Coast Highway below, according to Caltrans spokeswoman Jeanne Bonfilio. Owners had been opposed to the work, but Caltrans director Will Kempton signed an order giving work crews the right to enter properties to repair a cliff fissure, which the agency said could trigger a landslide.

Motorists will continue to face delays of up to 90 minutes for the next few weeks as lanes are reduced to one in each direction.

Similarly, about four miles of Topanga Canyon Boulevard, which runs between Pacific Coast Highway and the Ronald Reagan Freeway, will be open only from 6 to 9 a.m. and 3 to 9 p.m. indefinitely. Caltrans estimates cost of repairs for 33 projects in L.A. and Ventura counties at $42 million.

Meanwhile, L.A. County’s public works department has fixed about half of the 110 roads in unincorporated territory; repairs are still to be done on about four dozen. Although some were quickly cleared with a bulldozer, others need more work to make sure the road surface, undergirding and hillsides are stable.

“There are a few that are just going to be out for a long time,” said county public works spokesman Ken Pellman, noting that 600 mudslides were reported in unincorporated areas, mostly in the Malibu-Topanga area, the San Gabriel Mountains and the roads through the Angeles National Forest.

So far, the county estimates repairs to its roads and flood control systems at about $103 million, Pellman said, most of which could be covered by federal disaster aid and state funds.

Among the worst hit was San Francisquito Canyon Road, which links Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley. That road won’t open till at least October. Bouquet Canyon Road is largely repaired after huge portions were washed away; it is expected to reopen by the end of March.

Meanwhile, Federal Emergency Management Administration aid authorized by President Bush is trickling in for damage done by storms between Dec. 27 and Jan. 11. As of Thursday, FEMA had allocated about $9.45 million in aid. “That’s just what’s been approved so far -- a little slice of the pie,” said FEMA spokesman Chad Ladov.

The agency has received 302 requests for assistance for public projects in Southern California, which can include a range of reimbursements in addition to the repairs, such as overtime for workers.

On Wednesday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency for much of Southern California, providing government agencies the opportunity to seek state reimbursement of 75% of their storm-related costs since Jan. 11. If Bush extends the eligibility period for FEMA funds, it would reduce local government’s share of the cost to 6.25%.