Pacific Coast Highway Reopens Nearly 4 Weeks After Los Angeles Fires

A key stretch of Pacific Coast Highway reopened on Monday to regular traffic, nearly four weeks after wildfires burned surrounding neighborhoods and displaced thousands of people.

The reopening of the iconic highway will allow traffic to flow along the coastal stretch between Santa Monica and Malibu, possibly improving access for local residents and making it easier for residents of the Pacific Palisades neighborhood to see their homes.

But the reopening was criticized by some officials and residents for potentially bringing too many visitors to the burned area too soon.

Mayor Doug Stewart of Malibu said in a statement that he was surprised by the announcement from the City of Los Angeles about the reopening of the highway. Mr. Stewart said that he was concerned that curiosity seekers from outside the area might try to drive through to see the devastation for themselves.

Access to local streets in Pacific Palisades remains restricted to residents. But dozens of the homes that were destroyed by the Palisades fire were along Pacific Coast Highway itself.

“Please remember that what you are seeing is not just burned structures — it is someone’s home, their memories, and their loss,” Mr. Stewart said. “This is not a spectacle or a novelty; it is a tragedy that our neighbors are living through.”

Lindsey Horvath, the Los Angeles County supervisor whose district includes Malibu and the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, said on Monday that the reopening was meant to allow residents of the area to resume their lives, “and local-only traffic is highly encouraged.”

“It’s important that we set expectations,” Ms. Horvath said. “This will not be the same P.C.H. as before the fires.”

The California Department of Transportation said on Monday that only one lane of the road — also known as State Highway 1 — will be open in each direction between Carbon Beach Terrace in Malibu and Temescal Canyon Road. The speed limit along that roughly 10-mile stretch will be 25 miles an hour.

Bruce Silverstein, a Malibu City Council member, said on Monday that he believed his city had the legal authority to close off Pacific Coast Highway to nonessential traffic. He said he planned to propose a motion soon that would limit highway access to residents of the area.

Mr. Silverstein said he believed that, for now, the stretch of Pacific Coast Highway near areas affected by the fires should be open only to residents, workers in the area and people involved in relief and recovery efforts. Tourists and commuters should be excluded from that stretch of the highway, he said.

“It is not like Malibu will be closed off to those folks,” Mr. Silverstein said. “They will just need to get there a different way.”