Community Chat

[shoekitty]

A really good point was brought up about fixing the roads. They do, but there are environmental concerns. No one does environmental concerns better than California, especially when it comes to the beaches.

They did fix part of PCH near Malibu, it took several years to prop up the coast from the fires and storms. Also the hills on the east side of the road were falling, plus one or two homes. Concerned people live there, and the State of California also owns land there, so it is a group project. We all know how that goes. The traffic there was horrendous for a long time with construction sharing the road with drivers and pedestrians.

[dooBdoo]

On 2/9/2015 shoekitty said:

On 2/9/2015 dooBdoo said:

On 2/9/2015 Nancy Drew said:

I drive it all the time. It's fine. The ladies on 'the Talk" just talk to talk.

I'm not discounting your experience -- you're there and I'm not. But I'm curious about its long-standing reputation for being perilous. One of my sisters lived out in the L.A. area, and she's mentioned the dangers, too.

I think I know what Nancy means. I drive it often as well, and if you drive correctly, it IS fine. PCH runs from the southern end of Baja California for 2500 miles! it does jig and jag, as there are pieces that are unusable or gone! it is also called Highway 1. Of course the most notable part is around Malibu, and Big Sur as well. During the storms of the late 1990's, and the fires of the early 2000's, patches of it have eroded...and badly!

The stretch of PCH near Malibu from Pepperdine to Santa Monica goes through many homes, business, and beaches. If you are headed South from Pepperdine you will see cliffs and beaches on right. Homes and businesses to the left. There are a few older homes in Malibu on right, near beach, but all you see of those is their garages. People pull in and out. They turn around in the middle of the road. People run across the street. You need to be going the speed limit, and watch where you are going

Near Malibu tourists slow down to look see the homes. A couple of the roads are gated with security around The Colony as Jennifer Aniston, George Clooney and many celebrities live down there, or did. Tourists try to go down there, but there is security, and they are turned away...sometimes "escorted", so that blocks traffic a bit.

Thanks for the detailed description, shoekitty.

[tansy]

It all depends on the time of day, how congested a particular area is, weather and if the sun's in your eyes. People who know the road might be speeding. The tourists are trying to enjoy the sights.

[Sushismom]

As some others have noted, there is no way to "fix" the road in certain parts of the PCH. I've driven it many times from Half Moon Bay or Santa Cruz down to Morro Bay. I do, though, tend to stay away from the PCH around San Francisco and Los Angeles.

[NoelSeven]

On 2/9/2015 Plaid Pants said:

On 2/9/2015 Love Roses said:

It's and old historic route. Also bottom line is........MONEY. It takes money to improve roads. Another very strong factor is.........Environmental considerations. That lobby is always whining about this or that.

Truth is that it is an attention getter for the way it is and draws in tourist bucks. Things won't change with the loss of a life or two.

True. It's always about $. Every road can't be a five lane highway. Even five lane highways have accidents.

It's called paying attention while you are driving.

It's not about money, it's about design.

If you want a scenic coastal route, there's no way to make it a straight line or have multiple lanes.

For those who don't know, there are other routes and highways available to get you from one point of the state to another, the quickest is probably highway 99.

[NoelSeven]

On 2/9/2015 Sushismom said:

As some others have noted, there is no way to "fix" the road in certain parts of the PCH. I've driven it many times from Half Moon Bay or Santa Cruz down to Morro Bay. I do, though, tend to stay away from the PCH around San Francisco and Los Angeles.

[shoekitty]

Doobdoo

I was thinking. The stretch of coast(PCH, Highway 1) around Big Sur IS one of the most dangerous pieces of road. There are stretches that you really need to be an experienced driver, in total control. The road in those parts is not only curvy, but is narrow, and scales up and then decends. If I am not driving I hang onto my chonies, and close my eyes. I get car sick it winds so much. After the last fires, they had one lane at a certain point.

Believe it or not in this day and age people drink and drive around these areas, especially Malibu. Malibu has many private clubs and restaurants . I know people come out of there tipsy at times.

[tansy]

On 2/9/2015 NoelSeven said:

On 2/9/2015 Sushismom said:

As some others have noted, there is no way to "fix" the road in certain parts of the PCH. I've driven it many times from Half Moon Bay or Santa Cruz down to Morro Bay. I do, though, tend to stay away from the PCH around San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Having recently traveled the entire west coast many part of the highway are in need of resurfacing.

[september]

On 2/9/2015 shoekitty said:

Doobdoo

I was thinking. The stretch of coast(PCH, Highway 1) around Big Sur IS one of the most dangerous pieces of road. There are stretches that you really need to be an experienced driver, in total control. The road in those parts is not only curvy, but is narrow, and scales up and then decends. If I am not driving I hang onto my chonies, and close my eyes. I get car sick it winds so much. After the last fires, they had one lane at a certain point.

Believe it or not in this day and age people drink and drive around these areas, especially Malibu. Malibu has many private clubs and restaurants . I know people come out of there tipsy at times.

I'm glad you don't do this when you are driving!

I get carsick on this road when I'm a passenger. I'd rather drive.

[NoelSeven]

Devil's Slide highway: