A motorcyclist was killed after colliding with a Santa Monica Big Blue Bus at Sunset Boulevard and Marquez Avenue in the Pacific Palisades on Nov. 20, 2012, a crash that left the rider pinned beneath the coach and shut down a busy stretch of roadway. First responders were dispatched to the 16900 block of West Sunset Boulevard, where they found the rider under the bus and pronounced him dead at the scene. The bus, which had been leaving a layover, carried no passengers at the time. The Los Angeles Police Department opened an investigation into the collision.
According to a spokeswoman cited by the Santa Monica Mirror, a 911 call came in just after 10:30 a.m., sending paramedics racing to the intersection. The Los Angeles Times reported that the rider was pinned beneath the bus and was declared dead at the scene. Witnesses told the papers that investigators closed Sunset Boulevard in both directions while they examined the wreckage and documented the crash.
Suja Lowenthal, government and community relations manager for Big Blue Bus, told the Santa Monica Mirror that the bus, later identified as unit 3855 on Route 9, "had no passengers" and was "emerging from a layover position at Sunset and Marquez" when the crash occurred. She said that, based on early indications, "our driver made a legal left turn (from Marquez) onto Sunset Boulevard and the motorcyclist collided with the bus." Lowenthal added that Big Blue Bus would carry out an internal review while police continued their own probe.
Longstanding safety questions at Sunset and Marquez
The Sunset-Marquez turn has long been a sore spot for residents and transit planners, who have flagged it after earlier crashes and bus routing fights. Local reporting and community council records show that the turn and Route 9 movements were scrutinized after previous incidents, with temporary detours and Los Angeles Department of Transportation involvement to limit higher-risk turn movements, according to Patch and meeting minutes from the Pacific Palisades Community Council. In the years following the fatal collision, neighbors and local leaders continued to press for clearer turn restrictions and alternative routings.
Why this matters now
The crash is drawing renewed scrutiny as Big Blue Bus restores and tweaks Route 9 service to the Palisades under its Brighter Blue plan, including a summer 2025 service change and additional schedule updates that took effect in April 2026. A 2025 press release from Big Blue Bus announced the restoration of service to the Pacific Palisades, while April 2026 service notes from Big Blue Bus detail new school-day express trips on Route 9. With more frequent runs and additional school-time trips, longtime trouble spots like the Sunset-Marquez turn remain a practical and safety concern for agencies trying to balance service needs with tight street geometry.
The LAPD said an investigation was opened at the time, and no immediate criminal charges were reported in the days following the crash, leaving public records and internal agency reviews as the formal account of what happened. Residents near the intersection and community meeting regulars have continued to push officials for changes that reduce conflicts between motorcycles, passenger vehicles and large transit buses. Investigators asked anyone with information about the collision at the time to come forward to help clarify the circumstances surrounding the deadly impact.
