Road Work to Begin on P.V. Peninsula

A four-month project to improve traffic safety at the busy and hazardous triangle intersection of Palos Verdes drives West and North in Palos Verdes Estates has begun. Crews are scheduled to work weekdays from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

City Planning Director Cathy Reed said traffic will be kept flowing during construction along one lane entering the city southbound from Torrance and another lane going northbound into Torrance. Delays are possible, however, in the intersection that links the peninsula to traffic bound for the beach cities and points north.

The $555,206 project is being undertaken to reconfigure two consecutive curves in Palos Verdes Drive that have different arcs. The inconsistent curves force drivers to readjust their steering wheels. They will be realigned into a single continuous curve with the same arc. A median will be added to keep cars from crossing into opposing lanes, where there have been head-on collisions.

According to the city, the triangle, which is next to Malaga Cove Plaza and carries 32,000 cars a day, was the scene of two traffic fatalities and 71 other accidents between 1981 and 1983. The fatalities and the most serious accidents occurred on the curves.

A second, $1.9-million phase of the project calls for construction of an overpass at the triangle, where the two Palos Verdes drives and Via Chico intersect. The bridge will carry northbound traffic headed for Torrance.