OLYMPIC VALLEY, Calif. – Palisades Tahoe wrapped up a third winter with its parking program and says the implementation has delivered significant operational, environmental, and community benefits.

Historically, on peak ski days, drivers were met with gridlock traffic backed up for miles, making commuting around the region difficult for residents, workers and visitors.

Palisades Tahoe started a winter parking reservation program on the weekends and holidays to help curb traffic congestion, and manage capacity.

Through tactics such as spreading out arrival times with its parking reservation system and reducing unnecessary trips through an incentivized carpool program and alternative transportation, the resort says it has significantly reduced traffic.

“The program continues to demonstrate that thoughtful planning and strong guest participation,” the resort said, “can meaningfully reduce congestion, improve access, and shift transportation behavior across the region.”

Palisades Tahoe estimates the program has removed 107,372 vehicles from area roadways and prevented an estimated 893 tons of CO₂ emissions.

The program relies on multiple alternative transportation and transit programs.

The Park & Ride program provides free TART shuttles from a Truckee and Tahoe City to the resort on the weekends. This year, the program had 10,461 riders.

The free on-demand Mountaineer shuttle service within Olympic Valley and Alpine Meadows had 79,912 riders this season.

A free weekend shuttle on the West Shore to the back side of Alpine Meadows (Sherwood Chairlift) saw 1,210 riders this season.

New to the 2025-2026 winter season was a carpool program. Previously, the resort had implemented a carpool program for employees and expanded the concept over the winter to guests.

Participants carpooling in groups of four or more received incentives and priority parking access.

The resort says 1,301 drivers participated, removing an estimated 5,200 vehicles from regional roadways.

Additionally, employees carpooled to work 6,796 times this season, reducing roadway traffic by approximately 2,200 vehicles.

“As Palisades Tahoe continues to refine its parking and transportation strategy, the resort remains focused on reducing environmental impact, improving access, and supporting the surrounding community,” the resort says. “The results from the first three years demonstrate that with strong participation and continued innovation, long-term change is not only possible—it is already underway.”

Palisades Tahoe acknowledges other key players in the effort, including support from Placer County, the North Tahoe Community Alliance, the the Town of Truckee, the California Highway Patrol, the Placer County Sheriff, Tahoe Area Regional Transit (TART), Mountaineer Transit Company, and the Truckee North Tahoe Transportation Management Association.

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