VALLEY POLICE PLAN TO SLOW KILLER TRAFFIC.

Byline: Rick Orlov Staff Writer

With serious traffic crashes in the Valley doubling in two years, Los Angeles officials vowed Monday to crack down on drivers who speed and run red lights with a blitz of beefed-up patrols, warning signs and intersection cameras.

Capt. Greg Meyer, commanding officer of the Valley Traffic Division, told the City Council's Public Safety Committee that serious crashes - those with injuries - increased from 813 to more than 1,500 in two years.

``All of these were due to speed,'' Meyer said. ``This is simply intolerable. . . . I have set as a goal to cut that by 50 percent if we can get in place the programs we think we need.''

To illustrate the tragedies caused by drivers in a hurry, Meyer told of a recent incident in which a teen-age driver made an illegal left turn near her high school, and the car was hit broadside by one that police said was speeding. The teen-ager's mother, riding in the passenger seat, was killed.

``It's that type of thing we have to stop,'' Meyer said. ``It is tragic.''

A Daily News survey has found that the San Fernando Valley has the most dangerous intersections in the city, with six of the 11 with the worst crash rates.

Meyer attributed it to impatience by drivers.

``I call it everyone is in a hurry dot-com,'' Meyer said. ``We have to find a way to slow people down.''

Meyer did not yet put a dollar figure on the price of overtime pay to get more traffic patrols on the streets. He said he also has been working with Assembly Speaker-elect Robert Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys, to get state funds for a pilot program.

In addition, Meyer wants the city Department of Transportation to post signs along three-mile stretches of Roscoe and Balboa boulevards that read, ``Warning. Speed fines could exceed $271.''

Meyer said many drivers view wide Valley streets as an invitation to speeding.

``They live in an environment of big, wide streets where 35, 40 (or) 45 miles an hour doesn't seem that fast,'' Meyer said. ``People in the Valley tend to drive like they're on the freeway. We need to find a way to slow things down.''

City officials are negotiating a contract for cameras at intersections that automatically photograph cars that run red lights. Similar programs are in effect in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica.

The Department of Transportation also has started a pilot program in which lights at 49 intersections remain red for several additional seconds to allow traffic to clear.

Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski, who chairs the committee, said the most frequent complaints she receives are about traffic and speeding.

Councilman Joel Wachs said stepped-up enforcement could save lives.

``We have to be aggressive about this,'' Wachs said. ``There is nothing wrong with a crackdown like this when it saves lives.''

Meyer said he is still working out the details on the size of the task force so he can submit a formal budget request to the Mayor's Office and the City Council. The size of the operation will determine its costs.

Miscikowski said she wants a report back as soon as possible on the proposal, which Meyer said he hopes to see implemented July 1.

Trouble spots

L.A.'s most crash-prone intersections and the number of incidents in 1998:

--Sepulveda and Victory boulevards 29

--Roscoe and Sepulveda boulevards 28

--Highland Avenue and Sunset Boulevard 26

--La Brea Avenue and Sunset 26

--Sherman Way and Woodman Avenue 25

--Crescent Heights and Sunset boulevards 25

--Burbank and Sepulveda boulevards 24

--Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue 24

--Sherman and Whitsett Avenue 24

--Coldwater Canyon Avenue and Ventura Boulevard 23

--Olympic Boulevard and Western Avenue 23

--Adams Boulevard and La Brea Avenue 22

--Crenshaw and Stocker Street 22

--De Soto Avenue and Lassen Street 22

--Figueroa Street and Manchester Avenue 22

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Box: Trouble spots (see text)