More than hour-long traffic delays on eastbound Pacific Coast Highway are caused by several factors. Delays should be expected weeklong.
By Kim Devore / Staff Writer
It’s been life in the slow lane for motorists along Pacific Coast Highway who’ve been hitting long traffic backups getting in and out of Malibu this week. The problem seemed to be the result of both construction and a malfunctioning traffic light on the highway in Pacific Palisades.
On Tuesday, for the second day in a row, commuters were trapped by delays of an hour or more.
“I got stuck in it yesterday,” Malibu Councilmember Andy Stern said, “and so did [Mayor] Ken Kearsley. He was sitting there for an hour and a half.”
Work crews in the Palisades may be contributing to the problem, said Sgt. Ken Scheurn of the Lost Hills/Malibu Sheriff’s Station. Sheriff’s deputies say construction will be taking away one lane of traffic going eastbound and warn motorists to expect delays throughout the week. But a malfunctioning light at the Bel-Air Bay Club seemed to be the big factor in the foul up.
Alan House of the club said he received numerous phone calls, but said construction at the club has nothing to do with the malfunctioning lights. House maintained that Caltrans has control over the traffic signal.
“It has to do with timing of the light,” he said. “It’s a Caltrans issue.”
At times, even Caltrans isn’t up to speed on its signal problems. A call to its 800.427.ROAD traffic update number said there were no problems to report along Highway 1 in Southern California.
On Tuesday afternoon, Caltrans Public Information Officer Jeanne Bonfilio confirmed that there was in fact a problem with the light on the highway at the Bel-Air Bay Club due to a malfunction in the computer controller system. By late Tuesday she reported the problem had been fixed.
This is not the first time there have been signal problems in the Palisades. Just last Saturday, a flashing red light at Temescal Canyon Road caused delays in the westbound direction late into the evening hours. Last year, a malfunctioning of a traffic signal near the entrance to the Bel-Air Bay Club caused a traffic jam stretching all the way back to the Malibu Pier.
At the time, Caltrans spokesperson Dave White said a work crew contracted by the club was realigning the intersection of the highway with the club’s driveway, a Caltrans-permitted project, when rain caused a short in the traffic signal’s power. The emergency backup power for the signal took over and the light went to a blinking red.
As far as traffic control is concerned, the area is in the jurisdiction of the Los Angeles Police Department, which rarely sends officers to the scene of such backups. According the Sheriff’s Department, the LAPD is likely to respond to an injury or emergency situation, but not to a traffic tie-up. The snarl, however, did seem like a bit of an emergency for thousands of motorists, including Stern, who was also caught on the highway during last year’s big backup. The councilmember said he wouldn’t mind seeing a traffic presence when backups occur, but added there isn’t much the city of Malibu can do.
“It seems like traffic control would make the most sense,” he said, “but no one wants to do it.”