MALIBU : Teamsters Strike Delays Repairs to Slide-Blocked Lanes of PCH

Attention, weary Malibu motorists: Those rush-hour bottlenecks on Pacific Coast Highway are here to stay--at least through the end of the month.

Work along the roadway, where landslides earlier this year forced the closure of northbound lanes in several locations, has been delayed by a week-old truckers’ strike.

Caltrans is pushing back its work schedule by at least two weeks at Via Escondido and between Topanga Canyon Boulevard and Tuna Canyon Road because of delays in deliveries of concrete and other materials, said Margie Tiritilli, a Caltrans spokeswoman. Teamsters Local 420, whose members supply materials to Caltrans and other clients throughout Southern California, is on strike.

“We’re trying to work around the [delay] as best we can,” Tiritilli said. “We’re using what materials we have on hand.”

Caltrans did offer a bit of good news: Because of the delay, workers plan to temporarily open a second northbound lane between Topanga Canyon Boulevard and Tuna Canyon Road, where engineers decided they could easily re-stripe the road. The second lane is expected to open Friday and remain in place until the strike ends. Teamsters officials would not say when that will happen.