MALIBU—A new law was approved by the Malibu City Council on June 27, 2016, where the new ordinance requires valet parking attendants working in public rights-of-way in the City to wear high-visibility safety apparel to improve safety for the attendants, their customers and motorists on Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) and other streets in Malibu.
“Valet attendants are out working on PCH while hundreds of vehicles are whizzing past with little room to spare, at high speed, often at night when visibility is already low,” said Mayor Lou La Monte. “Highly reflective apparel will help keep the valets safer while they work, and help motorists avoid them. Our priority is to do everything we can to improve safety on PCH.”
According to a news release from the city of Malibu website, valet services and restaurants will be visited by the L.A. County Sheriff’s Volunteers on Patrol (VOP) team who is also partnering with the city to encourage valet attendants to wear the high-visibility safety apparel. The law applies to all valet services in Malibu, restaurants and private events.
The VOP will visit valet services and explain the ordinance. Valet services and restaurants will also receive information in the mail about the law as well. The city of Malibu will also display information on social media and on its Code Enforcement web page at http://www.malibucity.org/CodeEnforcement.
The ordinance was brought up in 2012 when the Malibu Public Safety Commission was worried about the safety of parking attendants while they are parking and retrieving vehicles along PCH. They recommended a law that require valet attendants to wear high-visibility safety apparel at all times.
The new ordinance is based on the California Department of Transportation’s Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (Cal-MUTCD), which states that people working in the public right-of-way must wear high-visibility safety apparel that meets the requirements of the American National Standards. The City Council approved the PCH Study Final Report in 2015. The PCH Safety Study Final Report focuses on road conditions, accident patterns and recommended ways to improve safety on PCH in Malibu. Between 2012 and 2014, there were 19 pedestrian collisions, including six fatalities.
Individuals can order their high-visibility apparel at https://safetyequipment.org/ansiisea-107-2015/. For additional information on the ordinance please contact Doug Cleavenger, senior code enforcement at (310) 456-2489 ext. 231 or email DCleavenger@malibucity.org.
