Utah has had a great winter so far in terms of snowfall, but the Utah Transit Authority (UTA) is having a pretty rough go of it. Back in September, UTA announced that they would be reducing their ski bus service. After a month of long waits and brutal traffic, the ski resorts of the Cottonwoods and UTA are finally stepping up to try and solve the issue.
The Deseret News reports that a new private bus service will begin on January 26th and run through April 16th. The bus service, which will be provided by Snow Country Limousine, will operate on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and on Holidays. Bus stops will be located in Cottonwood Heights, Midvale, and Sandy before it begins their trip up the canyon.
Round-trip tickets will cost $10. Guests who want to ride will have to reserve beforehand. At the beginning of the service, they will serve 784 passengers on a weekly basis. When it’s fully implemented, it will serve 1,120 passengers a week.
The public-private partnership was reached between Visit Salt Lake, Utah Transit Authority, Alta, Snowbird, Solitude, and Brighton Resort. The $240,000 measure was approved by the Salt Lake County Council, while additional funds are coming from the public-private partnership.
Traffic has become the key issue for many Utah ski resorts this winter. Instagram meme accounts like the @wasatchmountain memes and the @thewasangelessnakers have shown a lot of content of traffic frequently being at a standstill in both canyons, even on days when it hasn’t snowed.
Twitter users like Peak Rankings and the Red Line Podcast have criticized the Cottonwood Canyon ski resorts and UTA for dropping service, and have posted videos and photos of the brutal lines at the bus stations.
Dear @RideUTA @AltaSkiArea @Snowbird: if you want people to take the bus, make sure they can actually take the bus. pic.twitter.com/pShxrDAGaS
— PeakRankings (@Peak_Rankings) December 29, 2022
Horrific parking lot traffic kept the four busses that were supposed to pick us up unmoving for most of that time. The pictured bus (which was full before it got to us) was literally stationary for at least an hour and a half because traffic wouldn't let it or anything else merge pic.twitter.com/xIrsenGGDR
— The Red Line Podcast (@TheRedLine_pod) January 9, 2023
and UDOT/the resorts/the state needs to hire coach busses to resume better headways. Somebody is going to get frostbite or hypothermia or something else terrible if this continues, because I know for a fact that some folks waited another hour after we were able to get down.
— The Red Line Podcast (@TheRedLine_pod) January 9, 2023
It’s a good first step, but the bus program will likely be a little bit underwhelming for this winter. Getting an additional 112/160 people up in a bus compared to a car each day won’t make a major difference, but it’s a positive start in the right direction.
The next step I’d like to see is to have each of these ski resorts operate its own busses, which would further reduce traffic in the canyons.
Image/Video Credits: UDOT Cottonwood Canyons, Snow Country Limousine, Peak Rankings, The Red Line Podcast
