When voters approved a half-percent sales tax increase for the Central Ohio Transit Authority in November, Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther said it would “change the trajectory of this community.”
The tax will fund LinkUS, a plan for more bus service, rapid bus lines, and sidewalks and bike paths.
While the new tax goes into effect on the first of the year, don’t expect the buses to start running 24/7 or shiny new rapid lines overnight. Those things will come in due time, especially since sales tax reaches COTA three to four months after it’s collected.
A COTA CMAX bus moves through downtown Columbus on Dec. 20. The public transit system is working on expanding services after voters approved a sales-tax increase in November.
“The first year will be a little bit less than the years following,” said Jeff Pullin, a COTA spokesperson.
But COTA is already making plans and budgeting for improved services. Here’s what to expect from COTA and LinkUS in 2025.
More: The sales tax in Central Ohio is going up Jan. 1. Here’s what that applies to
COTA busses move through downtown Columbus on Dec. 20, 2024
More drivers, more hours
Changes to COTA service happen three times per year: January, May and September. The January service changes will be modest because those decisions were made before LinkUS passed, said Pullin.
In the 2025 COTA budget passed earlier this month, the COTA Board of Trustees approved hiring 35 more bus drivers, bringing their total approved driver workforce to about 700. More staff means the bus system will be able to add service hours and increase frequency on high-ridership lines. This includes extending service hours to midnight in May or September.
“That’s really going to help our (community’s) second and third-shift workers because they can’t really use our service when it ends around 11 p.m. because they can’t get to work or they can’t get home from work,” he said. “We know we’ll get a lot of people returning to COTA just by moving to midnight.”
Breaking ground on first rapid bus line
In the long term, LinkUS calls for building five rapid bus lines, three of which are already mostly designed.
These lines will have larger, 60-foot accordion buses operating in dedicated bus lanes for most of the trip. COTA plans to build covered bus stations level with bus doors and require payment before getting on to expedite boarding.
Toward the end of 2025, COTA could start construction on the first line, West Broad Street between Prairie Township and downtown Columbus. COTA wants to open the 9.3-mile line in 2028. Pullin said the West Broad line is 90% designed and that project is on track.
Second, a 13.6-mile line along East Main Street is supposed to be completed in 2029.
LinkUS calls for a third line, an 8.5-mile first phase of a northwest line, to be completed by the end of 2030. The exact path is still being planned, but once two additional phases are completed, a 19-mile route would connect downtown Columbus to near the Ohio University campus area in Dublin.
COTA intends to have public meetings in the Northwest corridor in 2025 to get community input on the route and stop locations.
More green buses
Next year, COTA will retire its last diesel buses. The 2025 budget includes money for 25 more buses that run on compressed natural gas, which burns cleaner and costs less.
COTA will also install electric chargers along some lines next year to allow its electric buses to stay out all day.
The transit authority also got a $22.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to buy 10 hydrogen-fueled buses and fueling stations in a pilot program next year to test buses that produce no emissions.
What’s next for COTA in 2025 after the LinkUS levy passed? COTA plans to break ground on its first rapid bus line and extend hours.
When will the sidewalks, bike paths get built?
The COTA levy called for setting aside 27.5% of its revenue for sidewalks, bike paths and trails. The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission has identified the first 83 projects (150 miles worth) to be prioritized and built by 2030.
In the spring, COTA and MORPC will take those projects before COTA’s board to get the funding approved.
jlaird@dispatch.com
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus’ COTA bus system plans for improvements in 2025 after levy