4 Trucks Ticketed for Exceeding Kanan Dume Weight Limit

California Highway Patrol officers said they issued tickets to four trucks for exceeding a 14,000-pound weight limit Friday, their first day of weighing trucks approaching a steep grade on Kanan Dume Road.

A portable scale was brought to the road, a popular route from the San Fernando Valley to the beach, after a truck suspected of weighing more than twice the legal limit went out of control Wednesday and struck two cars, killing both drivers, CHP Officer Craig Klein said.

The heaviest of the four trucks, whose drivers received tickets, weighed about 20,000 pounds, Klein said. A second truck weighed nearly 19,000 pounds, and two others weighed slightly more than 15,000 pounds each, he said.

If found guilty of the violations, the drivers would pay fines ranging from $30 to about $240, depending on how much their trucks exceeded the limit, CHP Officer Bill Burdick said.

The flatbed truck involved in Wednesday’s fatal crash on Kanan Dume Road near Pacific Coast Highway is believed to have weighed more than 30,000 pounds, Klein said. It was carrying a load of cinder blocks, he said.

Investigation Continues

Driver Jose Martin, 22, of Santa Monica has not been cited or arrested, but an investigation is continuing, Klein said.

Killed in the accident were Christine MacIntyre, 48, and Linda Parrish, 33, both of Malibu. MacIntyre was editor of Shape Magazine, a national fitness publication.

The CHP set up the makeshift weigh station for six hours Friday about three miles north of the coast, just as southbound traffic approaches an 8% downhill grade, Klein said.

The scales will be out again next week and might remain there longer, depending on how many overweight trucks are discovered, Klein said.

On Friday, about 18 trucks were stopped, and four were found to be overweight. Eleven others were cited for equipment violations, including one that was too heavy for its tire size, Klein said.

The largest trucks can weigh up to 80,000 pounds if road conditions are normal. The 14,000-pound limit was established for Kanan Dume Road because of its steep grades, Klein said.