For Immediate Release
July 28, 2015
CONTACTS
Matt Myerhoff, City of Malibu
(818) 293-8962 / mmyerhoff@malibucity.org [mailto:mmyerhoff@malibucity.org]
Marc Lifsher, Senator Fran Pavley
(916) 651-4027 / marc.lifsher@sen.ca.gov [mailto:marc.lifsher@sen.ca.gov]
James Reina, Senator Ben Allen
(310) 318-6994 / james.reina@sen.ca.gov [mailto:james.reina@sen.ca.gov]
Sean MacNeil, Assemblymember Richard Bloom
(916) 319-2050 / sean.macneil@asm.ca.gov [mailto:sean.macneil@asm.ca.gov]
PCH Taskforce Holds Pedestrian Safety Outreach Events at Popular Malibu Beach Tourist Destinations to Make PCH a Safer Place to Walk
(Malibu, CA) – With the summer beach season in full swing, the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) Taskforce held multiple interactive outreach events to promote pedestrian safety on PCH on July 25 and 26 at some of Malibu’s most popular summer tourist destinations.
“PCH is one of the most iconic scenic highways and busy commercial and commuting corridors in California, so these pedestrian safety workshops are valuable tools in our efforts to keep it safe for all of its users,” said Senator Pavley (D-Agoura Hills), one of the PCH Taskforce chairs.
Thousands of pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists use the iconic state highway every day, and the cities, elected officials and agencies on the Taskforce organized the outreach to help educate them about the safest ways of using the highway and get feedback on how to improve safety on PCH.
The PCH Taskforce — co-chaired by Pavley and Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica) and Assemblymember Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica) —organized the outreach efforts as part of the PCH Safety Corridor Grant, funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and awarded to the City of Malibu.
“Motorists, cyclists, beachgoers, businesses and tourists all depend on the safety of PCH, so I am proud to support this event and be a part of the PCH Safety Taskforce efforts,” said Senator Allen.
The PCH Taskforce Safety Corridor Grant funds efforts to promote motorist, pedestrian, bicycle and resident safety and increase safety awareness along PCH. The community outreach and education events were run by California Walks — statewide experts in pedestrian safety and community engagement. The events evaluated pedestrian safety conditions along PCH and engaged with residents and visitors to identify pedestrian safety priorities.
“We should all do our part to make PCH safer. Pedestrians, cyclists and drivers alike are often faced with making quick decisions that affect our safety and the safety of others. Attending the pedestrian safety discussions are a great way to become better informed and help ensure that the decisions you make on the road are the right ones.” said Assemblymember Bloom.
There were “Sidewalk Discussions” held at the Malibu Pier and Zuma Beach on Saturday, July 25 and at Malibu Surfrider Beach on Sunday, July 26, heavily visited beach destinations for both locals and tourists where it is extremely common to see beachgoers crossing PCH outside of crosswalks to get from street parking on the landward side of PCH to get to the beach. California Walks operated a booth where they engaged with pedestrians about safety best practices and offered educational materials and displays.
“PCH is our Main Street. It’s a major state highway that runs through a residential neighborhood and commercial corridor, and we must do everything possible to ensure that residents pedestrians, motorists, and bicyclists can all use it safely,” said Malibu Mayor John Sibert. “These workshops are a terrific way to help raise awareness about pedestrian safety and are a step in the right direction.”
On Sunday, July 26, California Walks also held a Pedestrian Safety Workshop at Chabad of Malibu near the Pier where participants learnedabout pedestrian safety best practices, provided input and identified strategies to improve pedestrian safety on PCH. Participants included members of the Malibu Surfing Association, Malibu Chabad, and other Feedback received at the Pedestrian Safety Workshop and the Sidewalk Discussions will be incorporated into a pedestrian safety assessment report and action plan to be presented to the PCH Taskforce in September.
The PCH Taskforce, co-chaired by Senators Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills) and Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica) and Assemblymember Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica), is an active coalition comprised of community representatives, pedestrian and bicycle advocates, residents, law enforcement, city and traffic engineers, Caltrans, and local and state elected officials. The taskforce jurisdiction stretches from the McClure Tunnel in Santa Monica to the Ventura County line including the cities of Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Malibu and unincorporated Los Angeles County. It focuses on unsafe speed, unsafe pedestrian crossings, education on bicycle laws, and incidents of DUI in order to reduce the number of injuries and fatalities to motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians using the corridor.
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