CHP Patrols Return To Pacific Coast Highway In Malibu

MALIBU, CA — Expanded police presence has hit Pacific Coast Highway as part of a contract recently inked between Malibu and the California Highway Patrol.

The contract, signed late last month, will pay for about 40 CHP shifts. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which ordinarily is the sole police force on the highway in Malibu, will work with CHP to ensure that additional enforcement is focused on the days and times with the greatest need, according to city officials.

The $50,000 contract is a short-term one: City Manager Steve McClary had the power to unilaterally ink the contract under a state of emergency declared by the City Council following the PCH crash that killed four women in October.

McClary said he's working on a longer-term contract that will establish CHP patrols on a more permanent basis. That's expected to go into effect in January.

The patrols, which have already begun, mark the first regular CHP presence in Malibu since the city was incorporated in 1991, according to city officials.

CHP patrols are just one solution officials have sought to address speeding, reckless driving and deadly crashes on PCH.

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