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COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS — Cottonwood Connect is officially back this weekend for a second season to help carry skiers and snowboarders to resorts up Big and Little Cottonwood canyons.
The shuttle service is slated to run every day between Friday and New Year's Day before operating every weekend and on major holidays throughout the rest of the ski season, as it did when it was introduced last season to help reduce traffic congestion in both canyons. The last shuttle will run on April 14, 2024.
"We know it makes a difference not just for locals, but also for people visiting from out of state," said Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson. "We know that the congestion in the canyon is a challenge, and we know that commonsense solutions and all of us working together are what will make the difference in the end."
Cottonwood Connect debuted in January as an emergency ski bus service in the middle of what ended up being a record-breaking season for Utah's ski resorts after the Utah Transit Authority, citing a large driver shortage, cut its Salt Lake County ski bus service in half. Salt Lake County and local communities, along with UTA and Alta, Brighton, Snowbird and Solitude resorts came together on a plan to create the service.
A little more than 9,000 riders ended up using the service over the course of 12 weekends, 83% of whom were out-of-state visitors.
UTA, which began its seasonal service last month, has yet to bring back what it provided before last year's cuts. It announced some improvements for this season, such as providing the four resorts with vans for employees to pool in to help open up seats for resort visitors, improving the efficiency of getting buses into and out of their parking lots and offering "backup buses" — when available — during high-traffic demand and other peak ridership periods.
Agency officials said they planned to lean on Cottonwood Connect this year, too.
"We recognize that the demand is higher than we might be able to meet at times and Cottonwood Connect will be an important component to that," said Carlton Christensen, chairman of UTA's board of trustees, reaffirming the need for the service on Tuesday. "We're confident that there will be plenty of rides for skiers that are looking for service."
Wilson said the service is "bigger and better than ever" this time around because of the experiences from last season and because more groups are helping out. The biggest change, however, is that it's available in time for the Christmas and New Year's holidays.
There are four routes for people to choose from:
- Midvale/Midvalley: This route runs from the Fairfield by Marriott and Homewood Suites hotels in Midvale to UTA's Sandy Park and Ride (9400 S. Highland Drive) to Snowbird and Alta resorts in Little Cottonwood Canyon.
- Cottonwood: This route runs from the Hyatt Place, Residence Inn Cottonwood, Hampton Inn and Courtyard by Marriott hotels in Cottonwood Heights to Snowbird and Alta.
- Sandy A: This route runs from the Courtyard by Marriott Sandy, Residence Inn by Marriott and Hyatt House hotels in Sandy to UTA's Sandy Park and Ride to Snowbird and Alta.
- Sandy B: This route runs from the same Sandy hotels as the Sandy A route, but the shuttle travels to UTA's Holladay Park and Ride (6200 S. Wasatch Blvd.) before going to Solitude and Brighton resorts in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
Every shuttle seats 28 skiers and snowboarders, county officials say. Reservations are required to ride; one-way trips will cost $10 while and it's $20 for round trips. Online reservations and the shuttle's schedule can be found here.
Sandy Mayor Monica Zoltanski said the shuttle service, along with UTA ski buses and employee vans, will be given priority access during the busiest periods in the canyons. This means the vehicles are escorted to the front of the line when the canyons are open.
