CHP TEAM TO TARGET NEW ROAD EXTENSION.

Byline: Lisa Van Proyen Daily News Staff Writer

California Highway Patrol officers are setting up a special enforcement team to focus on a newly opened and problem-plagued stretch of road, the connection of Plum Canyon and Whites Canyon roads, authorities said Tuesday.

The move comes after a man and woman were critically injured in a weekend motorcycle crash, said Officer Doug Sweeney of the CHP's Newhall office. He was not sure when the team would begin heavy enforcement along the mostly unlit, hilly section of road linking Canyon Country to Saugus.

Santa Clarita Valley sheriff's deputies have already issued 60 citations to motorists for traffic violations since the 1.8-mile stretch opened May 5, said Sgt. Steve Mulcahy of the Santa Clarita station.

``I consider this significant for a two-week period,'' Mulcahy said. The tickets are mostly for speeding up to 72 mph in a 40-mph zone and for stop-sign violations, he said.

At least 100 residents in the area have protested to the city that the road is unsafe and are demanding traffic signals and four-way stops where Plum Canyon intersects neighborhood streets. Residents sent a letter to the city with 100 signatures to indicate their discontent about the road extension, said Rabie Rahmani, the acting city traffic engineer for Santa Clarita.

The city and Los Angeles County are working on traffic studies to decide if and where signals, stop signs and crosswalks need to be added, he said. But the studies will not begin until this fall, Rahmani said, when children return to school and traffic patterns are set.

``We don't have any good feeling of the traffic at this time,'' he said. ``When a new roadway opens up, you should give some time for it to settle down.''

Several schools are near the new extension, including Sky Blue Mesa Elementary. A crossing guard helps students across Plum Canyon and Whites Canyon roads.

Jesse Juarros, the city's general services manager in charge of the crossing-guard program, said he hasn't found any out-of-the-ordinary problems along the new stretch of road.

``We experience the same problems elsewhere - rolling through stop signs or not paying attention,'' he said.

Rahmani said that in the meantime the residents' complaints, which include mostly the issues of speed and uncontrolled intersections, will be sent to the county to review.

Most of the new road is within the county's jurisdiction, with the intersection of Rogers and Plum Canyon in the city area. The intersection of Via Joyce Drive at Plum Canyon is shared by the city and county.

Rahmani said Saturday's accident likely will not affect road studies because it appears the motorcyclist was under the influence of alcohol. A drunk driver is expected to disobey traffic laws, he said.

Rahmani said he still needs to read the report. Meanwhile, he plans to study the tickets and any accidents in the area.

``We will review all the accidents in the county area and see if there is a constant factor in every one of them and see if they can be prevented,'' he said.

Motorcyclist Andrew Hawthorne, 25, and his passenger, Riquel Vaca, 24, both of Canyon Country, remained in critical condition on life support Tuesday at Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital, CHP officials said. They both suffered major injuries.

Hawthorne was apparently speeding along a curvy, downhill stretch of Plum Canyon Road early Saturday morning when he lost control of his motorcycle and ran into a chain-link fence, authorities said.

CAPTION(S):

Photo: Scores of speeding tickets have been issued on this new stret ch of road since it opened May 5.

Shaun Dyer/Special to the Daily News

Map: New connection