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Redondo Beach police report: collisions down overall but injuries increase; ebike enforcement remains a challenge
Summary
Officer Westfall told the Public Works, Safety and Sustainability Commission that total collisions fell from 574 in 2024 to 542 in 2025, while injury collisions rose from 225 to 251 and total injured parties rose from 301 to 327; the commission voted to receive and file the report.
Officer Westfall, a motor officer with the Redondo Beach Police Department, presented the commission with a comparative traffic-collision report and urged continued enforcement and education.
"In 2024, we have a total of 574 collisions. This year we had 542," Officer Westfall said, adding that injury collisions rose from 225 to 251 and injured parties increased from 301 to 327. He noted four fatal collisions in 2024 and zero fatal collisions in 2025.
The presentation identified top intersections and mid-block corridors such as Artesia as local crash hotspots and summarized primary collision factors, including improper turning and right-of-way violations; broadsides were the most common crash type. For bicycles and ebikes, Westfall reported 68 collisions in 2025, 64 of which involved injuries and a total of 69 injured parties.
Commissioner Bajaj asked whether the department distinguishes serious injuries from less severe injuries. "We do," Officer Westfall said, describing four categories used by the department: fatal collisions, serious injury collisions (for apparent great bodily injury), suspected minor injury, and complaint of pain. Public Works staff added that their map-based crash software recorded about 21 serious-injury collisions in 2024 and 19 in 2025, showing a roughly flat trend in serious injuries.
Commissioner Anderson asked about enforcement of ebike laws near schools. Westfall said motor officers focus enforcement around high schools and coordinate with schools and parents on outreach. He described difficulties with off-road electric motorcycles and high-powered ebikes that may be not street-legal and sometimes flee from officers by using routes inaccessible to patrol cars. Westfall explained the vehicle-code classifications used by officers: Class 1 (pedal assist to 20 mph), Class 2 (throttle up to 20 mph), and Class 3 (pedal assist with higher speed considerations), and noted a 750-watt motor-size limit. He also described a recent authority that allows impoundment of bikes traveling faster than 28 mph and restrictions on Class 3 riders under age 16.
Commissioners and staff emphasized education and positive reinforcement at schools—Westfall said the department ran about 12 bike/ebike safety courses last summer with roughly 40–50 students per course—and described enforcement as an escalating approach that often begins with warnings and parent contact.
After questions and discussion, the commission moved to receive and file the police report; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.
The report provides the commission with updated collision trends the city will use for enforcement, education and future engineering priorities.
