Lane of PCH to Be Closed for Four Weeks of
Landslide Work
• Cliff Between Latigo and Corral Is
Longstanding Problem that Could Require Major Remediation
Caltrans geologists said a crack discovered
in the cliff above Pacific Coast Highway at Latigo Beach
is serious enough that large amounts of rock need to be
removed, and sooner rather than later.
Cranes shifted concrete barriers into one
of the two northwest-bound lanes on Monday, and said the lane
closure will be in effect for at least four weeks.
On Jan. 27, a large number of boulders fell
onto Highway 1 traffic, narrowly missing a car driven by Malibu
City Councilmember Andy Stern. Crews working for the
City of Malibu scooped up the slide debris quickly, and the
city asked Caltrans to look at the cliff, which had a
large fissure remaining.
A geologist visited the site in early
February and recommended corrective action, said Caltrans
spokesperson Marie Raptis. The experts did not feel, however,
that an emergency closure was necessary.
The rockfall came a day after this
winter’s biggest storm dropped 3.3 inches of rain in 24
hours in the area, and several months after the cliffside
burned in the Corral Fire.
The cliff in question is between
Corral Canyon and Latigo Canyon roads, and has been
the scene of similar rockfalls and emergency removal efforts
over past decades.
Raptis said the visible fissures in the
cliff are serious enough to warrant emergency action,
although the amount of material that needs to come down is
unknown. “We have to get up into the ledges and
alcoves to see what is happening,” she said.
Work will go on 24 hours a day for at least
four weeks, however, as substantial amounts of cliff need to be
dislodged, Raptis said.
Similar uncertainties at cliff fractures
near Sunset Mesa and Las Flores Canyon have in past years led
to lane closures lasting months, and traffic on a daily basis
backed up in those areas east of the Malibu Civic Center.
The Latigo cliff, however, is west of the
Civic Center and Malibu Canyon Road, possibly sparing
evening rush hour drivers from delays where the road is
narrowed to one lane. The closure’s effect may be more
severe, however, on cars waiting for a gap in PCH traffic from
the Corral Canyon Road intersection, where a traffic light
is promised but not yet installed by the city and Caltrans.
