PCH Safety & Infrastructure Initiatives Highlighted One Year After Pepperdine Students Tragedy

October 24, 2024 - The City of Malibu held a press conference on October 18, marking one year since the tragic loss of four Pepperdine University students killed by a speeding motorist on Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), highlighting the progress made so far, and the measures that lie ahead in the comprehensive effort to improve safety on PCH.

City officials were joined by State officials, law enforcement, and traffic safety advocates to honor the memory of Niamh Rolston, Peyton Stewart, Asha Weir, and Deslyn Williams, whose deaths on October 17, 2023, devastated the Malibu community. Their loss, as well as the many lives lost on PCH over the years, have united community members, law enforcement, safety advocates, and City, County and State officials to prioritize and invest in making PCH safer to prevent further tragedies.

Video of the press conference is available here, and below.

Speakers included: Senator Ben Allen (District 24), author of Senate Bill 1297, Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (District 42), primary co-author of SB 1297; Malibu Mayor Doug Stewart; Capt. Jared Perry, California Highway Patrol (CHP); Capt. Jennifer Seetoo, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department; Lee Haber, Chief Safety Officer, Caltrans District 7; David Rolston, Father of Niamh Rolston, one of the four students lost on PCH; Damian Kevitt, Fix PCH and Founder of Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE).

The speakers discussed the impacts of the tragedy and of the dangers of PCH; outlined the many significant safety and infrastructure improvements implemented on PCH over the past year as well as ongoing and future measures. They also acknowledged the work that remains to be done and reaffirmed their commitment to making lasting improvements to PCH safety.

Key points discussed during the press conference included:

• Legislation - Senator Ben Allen (District 24) and Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin (District 42) discussed Senate Bill (SB) 1297, the landmark legislation that they co-authored, allowing automated speed camera systems on PCH in Malibu, which Governor Newsom signed into law on September 27. Up to 10 cameras in five locations will be installed at high-risk locations on PCH to help reduce speeding and reckless driving. The City quickly issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to develop a Speed Safety System Use Policy and a Speed Safety System Impact Report, which are essential first steps in implementing the speed camera system.
• Increased Law Enforcement - The City signed a contract to bring back patrols by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) to PCH in Malibu for the first time since the City's incorporation, with a three-officer Task Force patrolling seven days a week. Together with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) patrols, which also ramped up after the October 17 tragedy, the increased traffic enforcement resulted in a 36% reduction in injury collisions between January 1 and April 30 of this year. The California Office of Traffic Safety (CalOTS) provided $555,000 in additional funding to LASD, Los Angeles Police Department and Santa Monica Police Department for increased enforcement on PCH.
  
• Short-Term PCH Infrastructure Improvement - Quickly after the October 17 tragedy, Caltrans announced $4.2 million were approved for multiple short-term safety upgrades to PCH infrastructure, most of which have already been implemented, including lane separators to prevent vehicles from drifting into oncoming traffic or making illegal turns, crosswalk striping at all locations for increased visibility for drivers and pedestrians, more visible road striping, and more speed limit and curve warning signs.
  
• Long-Term PCH Infrastructure Improvement - Caltrans launched a PCH Master Plan feasibility study to identify priority areas, long-term safety measures, and safer travel options to improve safety on PCH for pedestrians, cyclists, and transit users. Input from residents, businesses, and stakeholders are being gathered through multiple meetings, surveys, and an interactive website. The project aims to re-envision PCH from a highway into a safer main street corridor.

• City of Malibu Traffic Signal Synchronization Project - The project, which has been seven years in the making, Malibu's largest effort to date to address PCH safety. Construction started in summer 2023 and is on track for completion at the end of 2024. The project will connect traffic signals from Topanga Canyon Blvd to John Tyler Drive, synchronizing them with real-time conditions, centrally controlled by the Caltrans Traffic Management Center. With over 4,000 collisions on PCH in the last decade-many due to speeding and improper turns-this $34.6 million project, funded by County Measure R, will directly address those issues and aid in emergency evacuations. Plans also include installing changeable message signs for emergencies, speed cameras with feedback signs, and systems to trigger red lights when speeding vehicles are detected.
• Public Safety Campaigns and Grants - The California Office of Traffic Safety (Cal OTS) awarded the City a $460,000 grant to fund four DUI checkpoints and eight saturation patrols on PCH in Malibu. The grant will also fund the City's "Malibu - Surf, Sand, Slow" education and awareness campaign to help change driver behavior.
  
• Outreach and Education - The California State Transportation Administration (CalSTA) and Cal OTS launched a public awareness campaign to support Malibu's PCH safety efforts, including 31 billboards placed along freeways outside Malibu, as well as posters, lawn signs, and social media advertising.

Malibu Mayor Doug Stewart commented on the many measures completed, ongoing and upcoming measures that the City has taken to address PCH safety, including the Traffic Signal Synchronization Project, improvements to pedestrian signals, crosswalks, turn lanes and medians at key intersections, and a pedestrian undercrossing: "We have made progress, but there is more work to do to ensure PCH is safe for everyone - drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians alike. It was a senseless tragedy one year ago, and our hearts go out the friends, family and everyone in the Pepperdine community for the loss of the four young women. Last night, we came together here for a candlelight vigil to honor their memory. The lights from our candles reminded us of the bright futures they had ahead, and our responsibility to honor their memory through meaningful action."

Senator Ben Allen commented on the importance of quickly passing SB 1297, which he co-authored, allowing automated speed citation cameras on PCH in Malibu: "These moments of reflection remind me of the gravity of the work we do in Sacramento. Sometimes it feels too political, but this was an opportunity for us to step up and save lives and make our community better and safer. And it was done in partnership with our local community. There was one purpose of this bill - to get people to slow down and drive more safely on this beautiful but deadly stretch of highway. Thank you to all the organizations who played an important role in getting this done. Thank you to the family and friends of the young women, who came and spoke at the hearings, it turned people around."

Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, who co-authored SB 1297, highlighted the community support and partnerships that made the many safety measures possible, from SB 1297, to increased enforcement, to the California Secretary of Transportation's quick action to approve $4.2 million in short-term projects: "This has truly been a community effort. As we honor the memories of more than 60 people who have lost their lives on PCH, we are also reflecting on the progress that has been made to ensure that the carnage is a thing of the past. At the end of the day, safety is everyone's responsibility, and we all need to ensure that we are following the rules of the road and paying attention when driving."

Damian Kevitt, Fix PCH and Founder of Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE), announced a GoFundMe campaign to raise $32,000 for a permanent memorial at Point Dume in Malibu commemorating Niamh Rolston, Peyton Stewart, Asha Weir, and Deslyn Williams. For more information, and to donate, visit the website.

For more information about Malibu's fight for a safer PCH, including press releases, documents and statistics, visit the webpage.

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