Taylorsville • Relax, the gondola war will not be coming to Big Cottonwood Canyon.
The Utah Department of Transportation on Wednesday released its plan for calming congestion on State Route 190 through the canyon, the home of two of Utah’s most popular ski areas and a thoroughfare for fall leaf-peepers. The gist of the plan, laid out in the agency’s much-anticipated environmental assessment, is this:
More buses. More tolls. No gondola.
“What we’ve seen is that we need to do something. The road is already at capacity. Every weekend it’s busy. It doesn’t matter if it’s snowing, it doesn’t matter if it’s dry, it is busy,” said Devin Weder, UDOT project manager for the Cottonwood Canyons. “And so what we’re trying to do is the most improvement with the minimum impact.”
Buses are at the heart of the plan.
Currently, buses run up the canyon every 30 minutes during the ski season and are confined to the same lanes as the rest of the frequently stand-still traffic. In its new plan, UDOT proposed running buses more frequently in the winter — every 10 to 15 minutes to start, with a goal of every 5 to 7 minutes by 2050. It also would like to create ways for buses to escape the Red Snake of tail lights created when automobiles pack the canyon’s mostly two-lane road.
One suggestion made by the agency was to build a bus priority lane on Brighton Loop Road between the fire station and Brighton Resort at the top of the canyon. Another recommendation was to add a dedicated bus route through the gravel pit near the mouth of the canyon that would allow buses to bypass traffic on Wasatch Boulevard. They would then pick up passengers at a mobility hub featuring a 1,750-space parking garage that would also be located within the gravel pit.
Those changes could shave between five and 20 minutes off of a trip, Weder said.
In addition, UDOT is “evaluating” the implementation of a winter-only toll near the Moonbeam parking lot at Solitude Mountain Resort. The tolling mechanism would be electronic, functioning much like the tolling lanes on Interstate 15. And, the toll fee would be variable, depending on canyon congestion.
(Utah Department of Transportation) The environmental study area of Big Cottonwood Canyon by UDOT.
“The main reason we have the toll is to try to get you out of your vehicle and onto the bus or to carpool,” Weder said, “but mainly get you on the bus.”
No doubt to the relief of many, a gondola is still not one of the solutions UDOT is considering for Big Cottonwood Canyon.
Why a gondola won’t work in Big Cottonwood Canyon
UDOT sparked a controversy in 2022 when it released its final environmental assessment for neighboring Little Cottonwood Canyon, home to Alta Ski Area, Snowbird and 64 avalanche paths. In that report, UDOT tabbed building an 8-mile gondola as its preferred solution over increasing bus service or implementing tolls.
The ensuing public comment period drew 50,000 responses, the most of any UDOT project. The agency did not release a tabulation of how many favored or opposed the gondola. However, after reviewing about 35,000 of them, local news outlet KUTV reported that some 61% of responses opposed the gondola, while 35% supported it.
Three organizations sued to stop the gondola’s construction. That ongoing litigation has also stalled the implementation of the first two phases of the three-part plan, which included both increased bus service and tolls.
When UDOT unveiled its preliminary plan for Big Cottonwood Canyon last year, it omitted any discussion of a gondola. Weder said neither it nor a train is a viable option for that canyon.
“Big Cottonwood Canyon is really winding. It’s really narrow. There’s not a lot of just flat ground,” Weder said. “And so if you’re trying to do a train or a gondola or anything that’s not just on the road, there’s no room.”
The only way to get a gondola to Big Cottonwood, Weder said, would be to go over the ridge from Little Cottonwood Canyon. That canyon has a flatter bottom, he said, and lends itself more to a gondola.
UDOT’s preliminary proposal for Big Cottonwood Canyon received nearly a thousand comments, which Weder said helped shape this plan. However, the agency is seeking even more input. The comment period for the final environmental assessment will run through Jan. 9, and UDOT officials will hold two public hearings during that time.
One will be an open house Dec. 17 from 6-8 p.m. at Canyon View Elementary, 3050 Bengal Blvd., Cottonwood Heights. The other will be an online presentation and listening session on Dec. 18 from 6-8 p.m. A recording of the meeting will be available afterward on UDOT’s website.
UDOT could release its final plan as soon as April. Then funding would need to be approved by the state transportation commission. Weder said that, as it currently stands, the project is estimated to cost $350 million.
Most of that will be taxpayer funded, not user funded.
“We don’t want it to cost a lot of money,” Weder said, “because we are trying to incentivize you to ride with us.”
While this proposal hinges on more frequent and efficient bus service, the agency also has an eye on making public transportation more enjoyable. It recommended installing indoor bus stops with lockers and restrooms at both Solitude and Brighton. It also recommends adding safety features such as platforms and pedestrian crossings at the existing Cardiff Fork, Spruces Campground, Silver Fork and Silver Lake bus stops.
“We’re trying to make this a really nice, comfortable way to go up the canyon,” Weder said. “We don’t want it to be uncomfortable. We don’t want to be inconvenient. This should almost be better than driving.”
An estimated 20 buses will be needed to make the plan work. That’s a 5% increase to the Utah Transit Authority currently fleet of approximately 400 buses. And Weder said bringing in those buses and hiring the drivers will likely be the biggest drag on the project’s timeline.
Prior to the 2022-23 season, UTA slashed its Ski Bus services to both canyons due to a driver shortage. It has reported it has since returned to full strength.
Barring another driver shortage, and pending approvals, Weder said he expects UDOT’s plans could be put into practice as soon as the 2028-29 ski season.