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Show Comments Invited on Winter :: Travel Restriction Changes The Utah Transportation Commission is inviting public comment on proposed rule changes that will prohibit motorists from driving on state highways through certain designated desi-gnated canyons between November No-vember 1 and March 31, unless their vehicles are equipped with either snow tires, steel-link chains, or elastomeric tire chains designed for radial tires. The propsed changes require re-quire the mounted snow fires or chains to be either on the driving wheels or inside the car. The regulations make no exceptions for vehicle with four-wheel drive, or radial tires without snow treads. Utahns will have until October 20th to submit written comments or requests for a hearing on the proposed ehanpes before thev come un o j - r for final consideration by the Commission. Statements may be addressed to the Utah Transportation Commission, Room 612 D, State Office Building. Salt Lake City, Utah 84114. The Commission will hold an oral hearing on the changes if requested by a governmental agency, an association having not less than 25 members, or by 25 or more people. The amended regulations were tentatively adopted by the Commission during its meeting last Friday in Monti-cello. Monti-cello. They will primarily affect skiers driving to resorts i in Little and Big Cottonwood Canyons. During previous winters, restrictions requiring snow tires or chains have been nnlierf in th two rnvop on a storm-by-stonn basis. When . the roads were dry and the weather was clear, vehicles ". with conventional tires were . allowed to travel the canyons. .. This winter, if the proposed ' changes are approved, vehicles vehi-cles not equipped with chains or snow tires will be barred from the 'two canyons during ". winter months, even when the roads are dry and the weather is good. Requests for season-long travel restrictions in Big And Little Cottonwood Canyons have been made by ski resort operators, the U.S. Forest Service and the Salt Lake County Sheriff s Office. They " maintain that sudden storms can create extremely hazardous hazard-ous driving conditions in the canyons for drivers not properly proper-ly equipped. ' . |