Caltrans Reviewing Options for Bike Lanes on PCH

Caltrans took another step forward with its project to add bike lanes to the portion of Pacific Coast Highway that runs through Long Beach.

This project comes in the midst of Long Beach implementing its Bicycle Master Plan, a long-term effort to make Long Beach a bike-friendly city through a series of construction projects centered on bicyclist safety.

During a City Hall briefing held Oct. 15, Benjamin Medina, a transportation planner with Caltrans, outlined the current design choices for the new bike paths as well as the idea fueling the concepts.

“We are doing this because we’re trying to enhance safety and accessibility for bicyclists,” Medina said. “It’s not just cars out there on the road.”

Alternative 1 is a class-IV protected bikeway that will place bike lanes at street level along PCH. The design has a three-foot buffer of painted lines and spaced-out plastic upright dividers between the bike lane and motor vehicle traffic.

The design, which is still in the rudimentary phase, does not address the traffic needs of specific intersections along PCH such as right-hand turning lanes or challenges such as the locations for public transportation buses to load and unload passengers.

The class-IV option has a current estimated cost of nine million dollars, funded by Caltrans, and is anticipated to take 12-15 months of construction with the projected completion to be summer of 2030.

Alternative 2 is a sidewalk-level bikeway that will have a two-foot buffer between pedestrians and bicyclists as well as a four-foot-wide curb between bicycles and motor traffic.

The sidewalk-level bikeway plan would require moving all current light poles, signage and telephone poles to the four-foot space between the bike lane and road way. The plan would also require moving the existing underground water, sewage, power and telecommunication lines.

This alternative has much less ability to address needs of public transportation due to the four-foot-wide buffer between the bike lane and roadway. This would mean that buses will often be required to stop the flow of traffic of the right-hand lane and bus passengers would have to cross the bike lane to load and unload.

Alternative 2 has a current projected cost of $104 million, funds that Caltrans does not have and would need additional partner coordination to secure. It is projected to take three years of construction with an anticipated completion date of 2035.

Currently, the Long Beach section of PCH has two full travel lanes in each direction, left-turning lanes at intersections, as well as a third lane that allows for right-hand turns and street parking outside of peak commuter times. Bicyclists using PCH are typically found riding in the third lane or on the sidewalk.

Although they are currently in the preliminary phase of development, both alternatives will completely remove the third lane despite rush hour traffic needs. The protected bikeway design will limit street parking, and the sidewalk-level bikeway may remove street parking altogether.

Medina said, “Part of what we’re going to have to look into is parking stock, parking availability, and do a study on how much is going to be impacted.”

The Caltrans construction project will provide higher safety measures for bicyclists, but as seen with when the city added protected bike lanes on the Alamitos Beach section of East Broadway, it may stress traffic and parking needs in the area.

Caltrans recently completed an online survey to get resident feedback regarding the plans and has a current projected construction start date of 2029 or 2030.

Residents can follow the Pacific Coast Highway Long Beach Bike Project and sign up for updates at engage.dot.ca.gov.