Pines to Palms Highway (SR-74)
- mapped
- 57.6 mi
- mapped
- motorcycle crashes, 2021–2025
- 90
- motorcycle crashes, 2021–2025
- serious or fatal
- 33
- serious or fatal
- fatal
- 2
- fatal
Is Pines to Palms Highway (SR-74) safe to ride on a motorcycle?
We don't rate roads as safe or unsafe: crash counts can't say how risky a road is, and popular riding roads have more crashes partly because more people ride them. What the records show: 90 motorcycle crashes were reported along its 57.6 mapped miles from 2021–2025, 33 of them serious or fatal (2 fatal). 61% involved no other vehicle. What to watch for: Desert heat, steep switchbacks with sheer drops, crosswinds and sand on the road.
This week's weather
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How riders crash here
61% of crashes here involve only the motorcycle, usually running wide or losing grip in a corner. Enter corners slower, look through the bend, and watch for gravel, sand and diesel.
Common questions about Pines to Palms Highway (SR-74)
- What is Pines to Palms Highway (SR-74) like to ride?
- Switchbacks from Palm Desert up into the San Jacinto Mountains toward Hemet.
- How long is Pines to Palms Highway (SR-74)?
- About 57.6 miles as mapped in OpenStreetMap, for the stretch we cover.
- Is Pines to Palms Highway (SR-74) open?
- Check Caltrans QuickMap (quickmap.dot.ca.gov) for closures, chain controls and roadwork before you go. Mountain roads close for snow, rockslides and fire, and some sections close every winter.
Other riding roads nearby
Crashes: motorcycle crashes reported within 60 m of the road, 2021–2025, from the California Crash Reporting System (CCRS). Road: © OpenStreetMap contributors. Weather: National Weather Service. Distances to other roads are between their middles, in a straight line. How the data works.