Post by gondola-project

Little Cottonwood Canyon in Utah plans to build an eight-mile-long 3S gondola, known as Gondola B, going from La Caille base station to the ski resorts Snowbird and Alta at the top of the canyon. The system is meant to reduce and avoid congestion during the ski season, which can result in over an hour in traffic to get through the canyon, and serve as a future transportation solution for the canyon which is expected to have more traffic with population growth. The gondola will also provide safe and reliable transit to the ski resorts, even in harsher weather where buses may have difficulty navigating the roads.

Gondola B was originally proposed in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) with several other alternatives such as widening the road or adding more buses. After several analyses, the gondola was chosen as the cheapest, safest, and lowest-impact system. After the decision, the EIS went through a 45-day public review period where the public was able to bring questions and comments on the preferred gondola alternative and the EIS.

The official website, Gondola Works, posted a concept design video showing the alignment and a fully rendered model of the ride. The system plans to have a bus stop and substantial parking at the base station where riders can park and store any excess items before riding the gondola up to both ski areas.

There has been a lot of pushback on the system getting approved with concerns about how the system would be paid for and the impact on the surrounding area. During the comment period, the EIS received over 50,000 public comments. In July 2023, Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) released is Record of Decision choosing the gondola as the transportation solution.

The system is estimated to cost around $550 million for the construction of the line and base station and $4 million for annual operation and maintenance.

For more information check out the gondola’s official website here.

Image Credits: Gondola Works