UDOT announces plan to tame ski traffic in Little Cottonwood Canyon

The logjam in Little Cottonwood Canyon may be beginning to clear.

The Utah Department of Transportation announced Wednesday that it intends to move forward with the first phase of its plan to reduce wintertime traffic congestion through the canyon to its two ski resorts, Alta Ski Area and Snowbird.

The agency is already working on expanding parking options for those wanting to take public transportation up State Route 210. That will be followed by increased busing, improved infrastructure, elimination of roadside parking and added tolling. According to a UDOT statement, the improved bus service and infrastructure will take place within the next two years.

“We need improvements in the canyon now to address the traffic challenges we are experiencing today,” said Devin Weder, UDOT project manager, in the statement. “By moving forward with these buses and infrastructure improvements, we are laying the foundation for a better, more reliable transportation system in the canyon.”

Little Cottonwood Canyon has become symbolic of growing frustrations over overcrowded roads leading to Utah’s ski and snowboard areas, many of which are within a few miles of a population center. On powder days, resort visitors often can expect the 3.5-miles journey to Alta to take three hours.

In July 2023, UDOT selected a gondola as its preferred method for alleviating traffic on the road, which has 64 avalanche paths. Several organizations then sued UDOT over the decision.

UDOT previously said it could not implement any traffic-calming measures until those lawsuits were resolved. The concern, Weder said, was that taxpayer money would be wasted if the parties who brought the lawsuits asked for a temporary injunction, which would halt all work related to any of the three phases leading to the gondola’s construction.

Now it appears the agency isn’t willing to wait.

“We just decided it was time,” Weder said Wednesday during a press conference held at UDOT’s Cottonwood Canyons Maintenance Facility. “We decided that even though we are in litigation, we would take a calculated risk that this is a big benefit to the valley, this is a benefit to the public and we need to start now.”

The new plan largely mirrors the $350 million strategy UDOT hopes to implement to curb winter traffic in Big Cottonwood Canyon, pending the outcome of an environmental study and public input.

One piece of the parking puzzle will be a transportation hub that will be built at the base of Big Cottonwood Canyon. It will be expanded to also serve travelers up Big Cottonwood Canyon if that plan is approved.

The hub, Weder said, is meant to make it easier and more enjoyable for people to get out of their cars and onto public transportation. Larger and more comfortable bus stops are also planned at Snowbird and Alta Ski Area with that purpose in mind.

Currently, buses run about every 30 minutes. UDOT intends to increase that to every 10-20 minutes during peak periods as soon as it finds sufficient parking. Buses to Little Cottonwood Canyon will not have dedicated lanes on Wasatch Boulevard or in the canyon. Those are included in Phase 2 of UDOT’s traffic mitigation plan.

Eventually, Weder said, UDOT plans to add tolling and remove roadside parking in Little Cottonwood Canyon Road. The agency previously estimated tolls will be between $20 and $30 per trip. Weder said they will be rolling, with the cost dependent on the number of cars trying to get through the canyon. He added that tolling will not begin until adequate bus service is in place.

“We’re not responding to future demand. We’re not responding to demand that is just starting to happen,” Weder said. “This has been the demand that has existed for decades but also in the last 10 years has gotten very, very pronounced.”

The timeline for the completion of Phase 2 and Phase 3 of UDOT’s Little Cottonwood Canyon plan, Weder said, depends on how long it take to complete Phase 1 as well as the resolution of the litigation.