Little Cottonwood Canyon Gondola Controversy Reignites With DOT Recommendation

SLC skiers, the end of your traffic woes may be on the horizon. The Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) has made another step toward its goal of reducing congestion on State Route 210, which provides SLC residents access to both Alta and Snowbird via Little Cottonwood Canyon. UDOT’s solution? A gondola.

The proposed gondola will sit at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon and carry passengers to stations located at the base areas of Alta and Snowbird. Each cabin is slated to carry 32 passengers and arrive every two minutes. A 2,500-car lot will provide parking for those making use of the gondola. The ride will take 30 minutes to Snowbird, and 36 to Alta. UDOT hopes that the gondola will alleviate traffic in the canyon.

Other transportation improvement alternatives on the table included improved bus access, the widening of State Route 210, and a train. According to UDOT, the gondola won out because it was the “most reliable mode of public transit in variable weather conditions and best meets the reliability goal of the project’s purpose, while taking into consideration environmental impacts, public input, and overall life-cycle cost in comparison to the other four alternatives.”

The gondola initiative is not yet set in stone. The project will enter a public review phase on September 2, ending on October 17. If you’d like to make thoughts or concerns about the gondola known, you can do so here.

READ MORE

Posted from Ski Magazine