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Gehrke: The time has come to toll cars driving up the Cottonwood canyons

If you’re planning on hitting the slopes in Little Cottonwood Canyon this weekend, it’s probably best to just get in your car and head up there now.

That’s the only way to avoid the absurd traffic that snarls Big and Little Cottonwood every weekend during peak season.

As Utahns, we love these canyons for the hiking, skiing and snowshoeing, not to mention just admiring the scenery or finding a respite from the unbreathable air. But as anyone who has tried to get into the mountains recently can attest, the congestion is untenable and getting worse.

That’s why the time has come to charge a toll to use the canyons, and a bill by Senate President Wayne Niederhauser — who lives at the mouth of the canyon — would make it easier to do just that.