MALIBU—Caltrans announced on Tuesday, February 24 that northbound State Route 1/Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) is reduced to one lane for about a quarter mile just north of Porto Marina Way, in the Palisades Fire Recovery Work Zone, while crews repair a wall that was damaged in the mid-February rainstorms. The lane is estimated to reopen later in the week.
Crews on February 16 closed the lane after discovering panels from a retaining wall had dislodged from the wall and fallen onto the right lane of northbound PCH during the rainstorms. The retaining wall was impacted by the 2025 Palisades Fire. It is believed that water during the storm seeped through the cracks, loosened the soil and then built-up pressure, which pushed the pieces into the roadway.
Engineers are assessing the wall and determining a solution to prevent future damage. Crews in the meantime will replace any missing panels and shotcrete the wall, which is a way of applying concrete through a hose at high pressure onto the wall.
Caltrans reminds motorists that PCH between Sunset Boulevard in the Pacific Palisades to Carbon Beach Terrace in Malibu remains an active work zone for recovery efforts from the 2025 Palisades Fire. The speed limit is 25 mph.
Motorists should slow down in the work zone, drive with caution and be alert for lane closures and construction workers and vehicles. Workers can generally close one lane in either direction between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. weekdays. Planned closures are listed weekly on the Palisades Fire Emergency Repairs website, but there may be others.
By Danny Jones