Improvements on Pacific Coast Highway will designate Class II bike lanes and upgrade roadway to reduce Bicycle Accidents and Serious Injury.

The California Transportation Commission has allotted $700 million for transportation infrastructure, restoration, and modification. Huntington Beach will benefit from this allocation with $14.8 million worth of upgrades to its transportation systems and bicycle access routes.

Along Pacific Coast Highway (SR-1) between the Santa Ana River Bridge and Anderson Street, Class II bike lanes will be added in both directions. These eight-foot wide lanes provide exclusive bike use with the exception of vehicular parking and crossways. Additionally, cyclists will benefit from a number of upgrades being planned with them in mind. 

According to Caltrans, the SR-1 Bike Lane Project would include the “widening of right-turn pockets, widening of existing shoulders, and reducing median island widths to accommodate bike lane treatments; removing existing sand deposits along the roadway; installing a concrete center median barrier; replacing and refreshing lane and shoulder striping; implementing bicyclist detection sensors at signalized intersections; upgrading curb side grated inlets to be bike-rated; and installing signage from Anderson Street to Santa Ana River Bridge;” all part of Caltrans’ Complete Streets directive. 

Caltrans HQ Traffic Safety investigations revealed that Huntington Beach has a higher than state average number of bicycle accidents along SR-1. The upgrades come in an effort to reduce “bicyclist fatalities and serious injuries on the California State Highway System.” Upgrading guardrails at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve and the relocation of some traffic signals and lighting poles in specific areas are also part of the plan.

These upgrades would begin in Winter 2025.

The man was arrested for allegedly assaulting a protestor at her town hall event last year

California Rep. Katie Porter reportedly criticized the Irvine Police Department after authorities arrested a man she lived with for allegedly assaulting a man at one of her town hall events, according to Fox News Digital. The man, Julian Willis, supposedly punched a protestor at the town hall, resulting in the protestor having a bloody nose.

Fox News Digital recently obtained text messages from Porter to Irvine Mayor Farrah Khan following the event. 

“Your police force is a disgrace,” Porter reportedly said.

Irvine Police arrested Willis after the alleged attack and gave him a citation. Porter, at the time, said her feelings toward the Irvine PD had changed forever due to the incident.

“I will never trust them again,” Porter said.

Porter spokesperson Jordan Wong told Fox News Digital in a statement that the Congresswoman “was upset that a planned family-friendly town hall was hijacked by extremists, who made constituents feel unsafe, including using hateful slurs in front of children.”

The altercation had broken out between Porter’s own supporters and supporters of former President Donald Trump. The incident had caused Porter to talk to media, claiming the event had triggered memories of January 6th. 

Wong said that the Congresswoman was “disappointed” in the preparation of law enforcement that day.

“She was disappointed that despite our staff alerting police days before the event that the extremists were openly advertising their intention to disrupt the town hall, officers on the day of the incident were hundreds of feet away and did not intervene immediately when fighting broke out,” Wong said.

“Since then, Rep. Porter and our office have worked productively with the Irvine Police Department, including the Congresswoman hosting the new police chief in her office for a constructive and cooperative meeting,” Wong explained.

Porter is currently running for re-election to the House of Representatives this November with her new district including Huntington Beach.

The cause of the accident is not yet known, while the officer involved is on administrative leave pending further investigation. 

A pedestrian died after a fatal crash with a Huntington Beach police vehicle whose officer was responding to a radio call the morning of Aug. 27, according to authorities. 

The accident occurred at approximately 5:40 a.m. near North Pacific and Broadway, when the officer struck pedestrian Derrick Deon Flanders, a 45-year-old resident of Rancho Palos Verdes. 

According to a statement from Central Highway Patrol, Flanders was taken to the hospital where he later died. 

The circumstances leading up to the accident were initially unclear, though the 22-year-old officer driving the vehicle was unharmed. 

The crash is being investigated by Central Highway Patrol, and authorities were reportedly sent to UCI Medical Center to conduct an investigation into the details leading up to the crash. 

The type of call the officer was responding to is not yet known. 

The officer was placed on administrative leave while the crash is under investigation, with any who may have witnessed the crash urged to contact investigators at their Westminster-area office at (714) 892-4426.