Letters to the Editor: Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu is a death trap, and everyone knows it. Bring back the CHP
To the editor: Another horrendous crash on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu took the lives of four young women on Oct. 17. We know the driver of the car was speeding, which is not surprising. PCH in Malibu is like the wild west. If you’re not going 60 mph (the limit at the site of the crash is 45), you’ll be rear ended. Drivers doing 80-plus swerve in and out.
Why? Because everyone knows there is little law enforcement.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is understaffed in the area, and there has not been effective enforcement since Malibu incorporated as a city in 1991 and lost the California Highway Patrol on PCH.
Knowing this, street racers have at times closed the highway for speed contests before deputies arrived, and people drive at speeds far above the limit. Tragic accidents continue to happen.
Malibu, with only 10,000 residents, serves 15 million visitors each year, mostly from other parts of Southern California. It has 21 miles of PCH. Public safety should be the No. 1 priority of our elected officials, so they should bring the CHP back to Malibu.
Scott Dittrich, Malibu
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To the editor: I am deeply saddened, but unfortunately not shocked, that four pedestrians were killed on PCH.
For decades, we’ve prioritized traffic throughput over driver and pedestrian safety. Vehicles have gotten bigger and faster, drivers are more distracted, and inebriation behind the wheel is still depressingly common.
Countries of all wealth levels around the world have made meaningful technology and road design changes that prioritize the lives of people. Meanwhile, in the U.S. many of us see 43,000 annual traffic deaths as normal, and government systematically fails to make the changes that would bring this number down.
I sit here infuriated and wonder: Will this collision inspire L.A. Mayor Karen Bass to accelerate (or even take seriously) the city’s Mobility Plan 2035 for safe streets? Will the U.S. Department of Transportation consider requiring speed governors on cars? Will the state Department of Motor Vehicles consider additional fees for heavy trucks and SUVs that kill a disproportionate number of pedestrians?
Probably not, but the usual rhetoric of “thoughts and prayers” is no longer enough.
Alex Hedbany, Culver City
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To the editor: Four beautiful lives were lost because a 22-year-old was allegedly driving more than twice the speed limit and texting behind the wheel.
Two questions: Why are automobiles that can go faster than 75 mph even made? Any why don’t phones disable texting when they’re in a moving car? If you need to text, pull over and stop your car.
Laurie Kelson, Encino
