County Supervisors Unanimously restrict Parking on narrow highway shoulders at Point Lobos; Senator Laird passes law Requiring agencies to find Solutions to Point Lobos safety challenges
New parking restrictions proposed by Supervisor Daniels will eliminate ‘choke point’ parking spots. The County must work with state agencies to provide a safe pedestrian path along the highway. Senator Laird passes law requiring Parks, Caltrans, and others to find workable solutions to safety challenges at Point Lobos.
The Monterey County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously yesterday to eliminate some parking on Highway 1 south of Point Lobos. This follows concerted public outcry over the dangerous parking conditions near Point Lobos State Natural Reserve (including advocacy by the folks behind this website).
The measure, proposed by Supervisor Kate Daniels (thank you!), directs county staff to apply for an emergency coastal development permit that implement ‘no parking’ restrictions at spots so narrow that pedestrians are forced to walk in the lane of traffic on their way to and from Point Lobos.
The approved measure also directs the county to work with Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol to increase fines for parking illegally in the vicinity of the Reserve. And it directed county staff to work with Caltrans and State Parks to restore and improve the pedestrian path to the west of the highway to provide visitors a safe walking path to Point Lobos.
In another very positive development, State Senator John Laird authored a bill (SB 178) that legislators passed and the governor approved last week, directing California State Parks and multiple other agencies to prepare a comprehensive report addressing traffic congestion, public safety, and public access at Point Lobos.
The report must analyze unsafe parking zones, promote traffic calming strategies and identify methods to disperse visitors in the daytime to improve safety and access.
These measures echo the proposals suggested by this website. (See here and here.) A big thank you to Supervisor Daniels and Senator Laird for championing these solutions to the urgent need to improve safety for visitors to Point Lobos!
Two Land Use Advisory Committees Recommend Approval of Reservation & Shuttle System
In California, a Land Use Advisory Committee (LUAC) is a local body—typically organized by a county or city—whose primary role is to advise a planning authority on land‑use matters that arise in the coastal zone. Two such LUAC bodies, one for unincorporated Carmel and the Carmel Highlands area, and the other for Carmel Valley, met this week to hear public comment on the proposed reservation and shuttle system for Point Lobos State Natural Reserve. After hearing comments from the public, some supporting the proposed system, some not in favor, both LUACs voted to recommend acceptance of the so called ParkIt! program to the Monterey County Planning Commission.
This is an encouraging development for the proposed system designed to reduce highway parking and ensure safe access to Point Lobos for all visitors.
Next step in the process: Review, including opportunities for public comment, by the Planning Commission.
UPDATE [Aug 6, 2026]: Read Monterey County NOW’s recap of the meetings.
Encouraging Developments
On July 17th, the Big Sur Multi-Agency Advisory Committee (BSMAAC) chaired by Congressman Jimmy Panetta and Supervisor Kate Daniels, heard impassioned testimony about the safety concerns about the Highway 1 situation near Point Lobos. They also received multiple suggestions for remedying the urgent safety crisis.
Following that meeting, Supervisor Kate Daniels’ office reports that there is progress on multiple fronts related to Highway 1 safety near the Reserve:
Removing the most dangerous parking spots. Supervisor Daniels is proposing that the County prohibit parking south of the Reserve entrance in the narrowest section of the highway shoulder -- an area where parked vehicles force pedestrians into the travel lane, creating dangerous safety hazards. She has requested the referral readout (the initial public acknowledgement of the referral) to occur on August 11th, the first Board meeting back from the break.
Advancing the permit request for the reservation and shuttle system. Daniels' office also is evaluating options to fasttrack the ParkIt! reservation system and is in active conversations with State Parks and County staff regarding what an expedited process could look like.
Raising fines to discourage dangerous illegal parking. Currently, a parking ticket issued on Highway 1 by State Parks is $71.50, but fines are much lower ($28) when issued by the California Highway Patrol. Daniels' team is working with the County finance department and CHP to increase those CHP fines.
Developing a safe pedestrian path along the highway. Daniels' referral on the pedestrian parking ban also addresses the incomplete but so needed pedestrian path north of the entrance to Pt. Lobos. The intent is to engage CalTrans and Public Works to work on repairing the small bridge on the path, which would also alleviate people walking too close to Highway traffic there as well.
Hopefully, the Supervisors will act urgently and decisively to assure safe access for everyone who wants to visit Point Lobos!
Monterey Herald: “The Problem With Parking at Point Lobos”
Conditions on Highway 1 near Point Lobos, reports the Monterey Herald. “have proven more severe and complex than mere traffic congestion. As vehicles circle the area in search of parking, pedestrians cross active lanes and walk along narrow shoulders of Highway 1. Perhaps most alarmingly, full shoulders and traffic in both directions leave emergency responders with no way to quickly reach the park on popular days.“
While the Herald rightfully points to the dangerous conditions near Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, unfortunately it conflates the cause of the dangers that pedestrians face while hiking from the highway to the Point Lobos entrance. “Many visitors [must] choose between illegal, often dangerous parking options close to the park’s entrance and half-mile or longer walks from Monastery Beach or other nearby destinations,“ writes reporter Tom Nolan. That misstates the facts.
Visitors who park legally on the highway face dangerous conditions and must often walk a mile or more to reach the state park, frequently forced into the roadway with vehicles traveling at highway speed. Illegal parking worsens those conditions but does not cause them.
Visitors to Point Lobos, a tax-payer funded public institution deserve safe access from the state highway to the Reserve’s legendary beauty. State and local officials must act urgently to take simple commonsense actions to prevent a child or other pedestrian forced to walk directly on Highway 1 from being struck by a vehicle.
KSBW Action News 8 Reports on “Outright dangerous conditions” at Point Lobos
Throngs of visitors walk along Highway 1 to reach Point Lobos.
Reporter Felix Cortez had the lead story about Point Lobos for KSBW News last night. He said that too much demand for too little parking in Point Lobos forces visitors to park on the highway, “causing traffic jams and outright, dangerous conditions for hikers.“
Cortez reviewed some recent actions by State Parks to reduce the severity of cars backing up into active traffic on Highway 1. And he pointed to the proposed shuttle system as a potential solution.
Cortez concluded his live report by saying the plan for the shuttle “is still being vetted out, and at this time, there's no time frame as to when and if that shuttle service might begin.“ (The application for the shuttle system was submitted to Monterey County in November of 2024 and is awaiting approval.)
A reservation system that would reduce the number of vehicles jamming up the highway as they jockey for entry to Point Lobos, is also part of that application pending at the County. This would also reduce the number of pedestrians forced into harm’s way as they walk from their cars to the Reserve’s entrance.
Please urge County officials to approve the application to bring meaningful traffic relief and much needed safety improvements.
“Carmel Pine Cone” Covers Crisis at Point Lobos
This week’s Carmel Pine Cone, the local paper for Carmel, CA mentioned the “traffic crisis” at Point Lobos on its front page. And ran an article about the advocacy effort encouraging stepped up action by government officials. (See page 11A.)
The Carmel Pine Cone covers the dangers on Highway 1 at Point Lobos
What People Are Saying (#1)
Someone from the Bay Area wrote to us to say, “Point Lobos is a jewel of the California coast. The current situation along Highway 1 is unsafe and unacceptable for a destination that attracts so many visitors. Improving the parking and pedestrian access would help prevent needless accidents and ensure people can safely enjoy this remarkable place.“
Local residents reaching out to us are sharing their thoughts about the safety crisis at Point Lobos…
“Please stop this madness,” implored one local. “Or, there could be a real bad situation for all of us who live here to deal with.”
“It’s not only on the weekends, its become horrible and dangerous 7 days a week,” observed another.
“The disorganization and confusion regarding entrance (open/closed/can we come in..?) impedes everyone and creates dangerous U-turns on a Hwy with clueless peds and motorists,“ said a resident of the Highlands neighborhood.
We will continue to share the feedback we receive from those who care about Point Lobos State Natural Reserve and those who visit it.
Meantime, gratitude to you for your interest in this important issue! And be sure to reach out to public officials!
What to Expect on the 4th of July Weekend
Point Lobos will be, as the kids say, crazy busy over the holiday weekend. If you are traveling south to the Reserve, you can anticipate frequent back ups (read: dead stop) for three miles. That traffic jam is likely to extend from Rio Road in Carmel to the Highlands neighborhood south of Point Lobos.
Parking will be extremely tight.
Some good news for visitors to Point Lobos: California Highway Patrol (CHP) has announced that it will step-up law enforcement around Point Lobos. Multiple safety agencies are expected to increase their patrols and ticketing of vehicles violating the law.
California State Parks peace officers along with Monterey County Sheriff and California Highway Patrol will be out in force for the holiday weekend.
Even with a few more law enforcement patrols swinging through the area, anticipate tight parking both inside the Reserve and all along the highway.
Reminders: There is no parking on the east side of the highway (across from Point Lobos). North of the entrance to Point Lobos all parking should be parallel to the road (hood pointed to the rear bumper of the car in front of you).
It’s State Parks Week
California State Parks Week (through June 14) is a great time to celebrate Point Lobos and to help make it better. Please take action to make the Reserve a safer, more pleasant place to visit. Thank you!