Mar 09 2008
This just in: (Probably) CalTrans to Make PCH Safe for Cyclists
UPDATE (3/14/2008): I visited the site yesterday and discovered CalTrans has done nothing! I talked to construction workers there and they said that CalTrans does not plan to reorganize the zone to make it safe for cyclists. Additionally, CalTrans set up is so bad that workers say rocks are coming dangerously close to the excavator, and there are huge boulders which will come off the hillside late, which CalTrans is ignoring.
I just received this information through back channels. Word is that CalTrans is going to repair the section of PCH I wrote about last week. An excerpt from the email I received:
CalTrans convened an internal pow wow to re-examine the permit conditions and plans for that major hillside repair project running from Corral to Latigo.
CalTrans maintenance and traffic investigation divisions will draft and approve a traffic plan to close N/B (completely for 4 weeks), keeping 4 ft for the bicycles and detouring the traffic from the N/B to S/B. S/B will be 2-lane highway: N/B and S/B. This detour will start on Monday the 3rd of March with Cozeep presense to enforce the traffic. (”Cozeep” means ongoing CHP presence.)
In essence the plan is is to move all the traffic to Southern side, leaving the North side for cyclists. Note that this says the project was to begin Monday, March 3rd. I visited the site on Thursday, March 6th (before I learned this) to take photos for a follow up post, and CalTrans had not changed anything. So, as of that moment the site is still dangerous, and CalTrans hasn’t kept up with their plans, if this forwarded message is accurate. However, it does appear they are discussing it.
I’ll call Monday to find out when CalTrans will begin the new plan.
Speaking up works. This is the proof. Here’s are Thursday’s photos of the site . . . bear in mind cyclists are sharing the road with cars and trucks driving 40 or 50 mph:
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I bike to and from work along PCH and I can tell you, the whole road is an absolute deathtrap for cyclists, especially if you’re alone and/or if its night-time. The only reassuring thing is that at least if one was to get say, doored into traffic or hit by an errant drunk celebrity, it would be absolute death, rather than a painful broken bone or bad road rash.
that said, im glad to hear that caltrans is at least saying that they’re gonna do something about that stretch, because at the moment its like jumping into a rushing river of steel.
redundant post re-hashing everything alex thompson has already said, OVER.
Once again proof that “Share the Road” signs are nowhere nearly as efficient as the “Allowed Full Use of Lane - CVC 2102″ ones. But those are probably too drastic too put in around Los Angeles, we’re not quite as civilized as San Fran just yet. It may not seem like a big deal, but I think the day we do see those specific signs on LA’s streets we can start trusting CalTrans/LADOT more.
[…] CALTRANS’ Bike Safety Plan for PCH Delayed (Westside Bikeside) […]
Thanks for the follow up and the photos. I can’t tell, how far does this bad section go? I, too, am not impressed with the Share the Road signage. The more I hear about it, the less I like it. Ultimately it’s a feeble attempt at safe accomodations for cyclists. I like the “new plan” if they actually implement it.
The section is about a quarter mile in my estimation. It starts being slightly uphill, and then it gets steeper toward the end. I sprinted it with a big truck tailing me and I was worn out at the end.
I’m gonna try to find out if it’s actually been fixed . . .
UPDATE (3/14/2008): I visited the site yesterday and discovered CalTrans has done nothing! I talked to construction workers there and they said that CalTrans does not plan to reorganize the zone to make it safe for cyclists. Additionally, CalTrans set up is so bad that workers say rocks are coming dangerously close to the excavator, and there are huge boulders which will come off the hillside late, which CalTrans is ignoring.