The Park City Chamber and Visitors Bureau and Snow Country Limousine want to start a shuttle program to and from the Salt Lake City International Airport.
The Park City Council expressed interest in the pilot during its Thursday meeting.
The proposed pilot would operate for 15 weeks in the winter, running hourly from 4 a.m. to midnight. The transit-style shuttle is expected to carry about 90 passengers per day and make 9,500 trips through the season. At full capacity, Snow County estimates the shuttle could move 37,000 passengers total.
Bureau president and CEO Jennifer Wesselhof said the shuttle would support city goals.
“It falls within our community-wide sustainable tourism plan,” she said. “It also allows us to better position ourselves as a car-free destination.”
The bureau and Snow Country said the pilot will cost about $820,000. That covers advertising, maintenance and reduced ride fees.
They are working to secure $10,000 commitments from various local hotels.
“Many of them felt that this program could be an incentive for the group and corporate market if they have a large group that's thinking about coming to Park City and maybe competing with another destination in Colorado,” Wesselhoff said.
Wesselhoff said the lodging industry was also interested in supporting a summer shuttle service.
The Summit County Council has already allocated money to support the service. It awarded the pilot a $160,000 restaurant tax grant in June.
Park City councilmembers are considering matching that amount. Wesselhoff said that would cover part of the $390,000 shortfall the program is currently facing. She said if the team can’t reach the $820,000 funding goal, they can shrink the pilot’s scope.
Wesselhoff said the goal is to provide the shuttle to locals and visitors at a reduced cost.
“The cost could be around $15 per person because obviously we need to compete with the private share programs, which Uber and other share programs [are] maybe $60 a car,” she said.
Snow Country provides private airport transport to ski resort communities in Utah, Montana and Colorado. It also offers point-to-point trips and hourly services.
Snow Country’s Adam Herrup-Morse said the pilot would deliver more affordable and flexible airport transportation to Park City.
“If it's December 26th and you have 50 people who want to come up at 10 a.m., great, we'll send a coach,” he said. “Reservations allow you really not only to collect revenue, but it allows you to keep an eye on what vehicles to send and how to maximize efficiencies.”
The shuttle would drop riders off at specific hotels and a few locations the council deems appropriate.
The councilmembers will decide whether to contribute money when the pilot returns to council this fall.
