List of COTA routes and services

The Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) operates 41 fixed-route bus services throughout the Columbus metropolitan area in Central Ohio. The agency operates its standard and frequent bus services seven days per week, and rush hour service Monday to Friday.^[1] All buses and routes are wheelchair and mobility device-accessible, and include front-mounted bike racks.^[2]

Interactive map of COTA bus routes
Note: not all frequent lines remain frequent throughout their entire routes; see the official map for details.

The authority also operates multiple transit services, including the microtransit service COTA//PLUS and the on-demand COTA Mainstream service.

List of routes

Line type		Days	Minimum service frequency	No. of routes
	Standard line	Mon–Sun	Every 15–30 minutes	17
	Frequent line	Mon–Sun	Every 15 minutes or better	10
	Rush hour line (express)	Mon–Fri	Varies, rush hour times only	14
Source:[1]

Routes 1–12: through downtown

Routes 1 through 12 traverse Downtown Columbus.^[3] These routes are classified as local lines.^[4]

No. and designation		Frequency	Destinations				Area	Ref.
1	Kenny/Livingston	Frequent	NB/WB	To Pickforde Dr & Bethel Rd	SB/EB	To Reynoldsburg Park & Ride	Map: Route 1 Kenny/Livingston	[5]
2	E Main/N High	Frequent	NB/WB	To N High St & Fenway Rd	SB/EB	To Hanson St & E Main St	Map: Route 2 E Main/N High	[6][7]
3	Northwest/Harrisburg	Standard	NB	To Tremont Rd & Langham Rd	SB	To Parkway Centre	Map: Route 3 Northwest/Harrisburg	[8]
4	Indianola/Lockbourne	Standard	NB	To Boardwalk St & Shapter Ave	SB	To Thimbleberry Rd & Alum Creek Dr	Map: Route 4 Indianola/Lockbourne	[9]
5	W 5th Ave/Refugee	Frequent	NB/WB	To Renner Rd Park & Ride / Hollywood Casino	SB/EB	To Gender Road Towne Centre	Map: Route 5 W 5th Ave/Refugee	[10]
6	Sullivant	Standard	NB/EB	To Spring Street Terminal	SB/WB	To Lincoln Village	Map: Route 6 Cleveland/Sullivant	[11]
7	Mt Vernon	Frequent	NB/EB	To Int'l Gateway & Sawyer Rd / Easton Transit Center	SB/WB	To E Mound St & S 4th St	Map: Route 7 Mt Vernon	[12]
8	Karl/S High/Parsons	Frequent	NB	To Boardwalk St & Shapter Ave	SB	To Great Southern Park & Ride	Map: Route 8 Karl/S High/Parsons	[13]
9	W Mound/Brentnell	Standard	NB/EB	To Easton Transit Center	SB/WB	To Westwoods Park & Ride	Map: Route 9 W Mound/Brentnell	[14][7]
10	E Broad/W Broad	Frequent	WB	To Westwoods Park & Ride	EB	To Limited Brands	Map: Route 10 E/W Broad	[15]
11	Bryden/Maize	Standard	NB/WB	To N High St & Fenway Rd	SB/EB	To Frebis Ave & Alum Creek Dr	Map: Route 11 Bryden/Maize	[16]
12	McKinley/Fields	Standard	WB	To McKinley Ave Garage	EB	To Fields Ave Garage	Map: Route 12 McKinley/Fields	[17]

Routes 21–25: north–south

Routes 21 through 25 are laid out to connect destinations north and south.^[3] These routes are classified as crosstown lines.^[4]

No. and designation		Frequency	Destinations				Area	Ref.
21	Hilliard Rome	Standard	NB	To Pickforde Dr & Bethel Rd	SB	To Hollywood Casino	Map: Route 21 Hilliard Rome	[18]
22	OSU/Rickenbacker	Standard	NB/WB	To Grandview Yard	SB/EB	To London-Groveport & Alum Creek Dr	Map: Route 22 OSU/Rickenbacker	[19]
23	James/Stelzer	Frequent	NB	To Easton Transit Center	SB	To Eastland Mall	Map: Route 23 James/Stelzer	[20]
24	Hamilton Rd	Standard	NB	To Easton Transit Center	SB	To Eastland Mall	Map: Route 24 Hamilton Rd	[21][22]
25	Brice	Standard	NB	To Easton Transit Center	SB	To Canal Winchester Park & Ride	Map: Route 25 Brice	[23]

Routes 31–35: west–east

Routes 31 through 35 are laid out to connect destinations east and west.^[3] These routes are classified as crosstown lines.^[4]

No. and designation		Frequency	Destinations				Area	Ref.
31	Hudson	Standard	WB/SB	To Grandview Yard	EB/NB	To Easton Transit Center	Map: Route 31 Hudson	[24]
32	N Broadway	Standard	WB	To Heritage Club Dr & Main St	EB	To Easton Transit Center	Map: Route 32 N Broadway	[25]
33	Henderson	Standard	WB	To 565 Metro Place	EB	To N High St & W Kanawha Ave	Map: Route 33 Henderson	[26][22]
34	Morse	Frequent	WB	To N High St & Fenway Rd	EB	To Easton Transit Center	Map: Route 34 Morse	[27]
35	Dublin-Granville	Standard	WB	To Boardwalk St & Shapter Ave	SB	To Easton Transit Center	Map: Route 35 Dublin-Granville	[28]

Routes 41–52: east Columbus

Routes 41 through 52 operate on the city's east side; 41 through 46 serve northeast Columbus, while 51 and 52 serve southeast Columbus.^[3] These routes are classified as rush hour (express) lines.^[4]

No. and designation		Frequency	Destinations				Area	Ref.
41	Crosswoods/Polaris	Rush hour	NB	To Crosswoods Park & Ride	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 41 Crosswoods/Polaris	[29][30]
42	Sharon Woods	Rush hour	NB	To Sharon Woods & Skywae Dr	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 42 Sharon Woods	[31][30]
43	Westerville	Rush hour	NB	To Westerville Park & Ride	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 43 Westerville	[32][30]
44	Easton	Rush hour	NB/EB	To Easton Transit Center	SB/WB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 44 Easton	[33][30]
45	New Albany	Rush hour	NB/EB	To New Albany Park & Ride	SB/WB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 45 New Albany	[34][30]
46	Gahanna	Rush hour	NB/EB	To Gahanna Park & Ride	SB/WB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 46 Gahanna	[35][30]
51	Reynoldsburg	Rush hour	WB	To Spring Street Terminal	EB	To Reynoldburg Park & Ride	Map: Route 51 Reynoldsburg	[36][30]
52	Canal Winchester	Rush hour	NB/WB	To Spring Street Terminal	SB/EB	To Canal Winchester Park & Ride	Map: Route 52 Canal Winchester	[37][30]

Routes 61–75: west Columbus

Routes 61 through 75 operate on the city's west side; route 61 serves southwest Columbus, while routes 71 through 75 serve northwest Columbus.^[3] These routes are classified as rush hour (express) lines.^[4]

No. and designation		Frequency	Destinations				Area	Ref.
61	Grove City	Rush hour	NB	To Spring Street Terminal	SB	To Grove City Park & Ride	Map: Route 61 Grove City	[38][30]
71	Hilliard	Rush hour	NB/WB	To Hilliard Park & Ride	SB/EB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 71 Hilliard	[39][30]
72	Tuttle	Rush hour	NB	To 5139 Park Center Ave	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 72 Tuttle	[40][30]
73	Dublin	Rush hour	NB	To Dublin Park & Ride	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 73 Dublin	[41][30]
74	Smoky Row	Rush hour	NB	To Sawmill Rd & Hard Rd	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 74 Smoky Row	[42][30]
75	Arlington/1st Ave	Rush hour	NB	To Nottingham & Riverside Dr	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: Route 75 Arlington/1st Ave	[43][30]

Other routes

Designation	Service type	Frequency	Destinations				Area	Ref.
CMAX	BRT line	Frequent	NB	To Polaris Pkwy & Africa Rd	SB	To E Mound St & S 4th St	Map: CMAX	[44]
102 Polaris Pkwy/N High	Limited-stop	Standard	NB	To Meijer & Polaris Woods	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: 102 Polaris Pkwy/N High	[45]
Night Owl	Late-night	Standard	NB	To N High St & Blenheim Rd	SB	To W Broad St & N High St	Map: Night Owl	[46][47]
COTA AirConnect	Airport bus	Standard	NB	To CMH Airport	SB	To COTA Transit Terminal	Map: AirConnect	[48][49]
Other fixed-route services: SmartRide New Albany Blue, Red, Green shuttles;[50] GREAT Blue, Red, Green shuttles[51]

Services

The Central Ohio Transit Authority operates multiple services without fixed routes.

COTA Plus, stylized as COTA//PLUS, is a microtransit service in Grove City and northeast Franklin County. The service enables people to use a mobile app or call COTA's customer service to arrange a trip within service zones created for Grove City and northeast Franklin County. Fares are different from fixed-route COTA services, with single fares at $3, day passes at $6, and weekly passes at $20. C-Pass holders, university students, children, and those with discount IDs receive free or reduced fares relative to their eligibility for other COTA services.^[52] The service was first launched in Grove City in July 2019, and expanded with a three-month pilot to the northeast portion of Columbus and Franklin County in May 2020, following service reductions due to the 2019-20 coronavirus pandemic.

COTA Mainstream is an on-demand shared-ride program for riders with disabilities.^[53]

Seasonal or event-based services include the summertime "Zoo Bus" to the Columbus Zoo,^[54] the "Bus it to the Buckeyes" service for Ohio State University football games at the Ohio Stadium, and the "Zoom to Boom" service to the city's July 4 fireworks show Red, White & Boom.^[53]

History

In 1993, COTA began its first "COTA LINK" circulator route, operating in Downtown Columbus. The agency began other circulators, including Easton, Broad Street, and Westerville services around 2000. These services were cut around 2004.^[55]

COTA began operating the CBUS service, a free downtown circulator, on May 5, 2014.^[56] The route succeeded the downtown COTA LINK service. In May 2016, COTA began its AirConnect service between downtown and John Glenn Columbus International Airport, available with the $2.75 rush hour service fare. Previously, the agency offered a similar service with a $5 fare from 2001 to 2003, cut due to low ridership.^[57] On May 1, 2017, the agency overhauled its bus network, the first redesign since COTA's establishment in 1971. The effort simplified routes, increased bus frequency, connected more locations, and reduced bus congestion in downtown Columbus. The redesign doubled the agency's number of frequent lines and significantly increased weekend service.^[58][59]

COTA began its CMAX service, the first bus rapid transit service in Columbus, on January 1, 2018.^[60] In 2019, COTA ended its OSUAir service that connected Ohio State University directly with the Columbus airport, citing low ridership amid other bus route options.^[61][58]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of the agency's services were suspended. This included all express services, AirConnect, CBUS, and the Night Owl service. COTA restored the express lines in May 2021, reinstating 90 percent of the agency's former services.^[30][62]

References

1. "Our Fares". Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
2. "Frequently Asked Questions". Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
3. https://www.cota.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/COTA-zmap-sep-2019.pdf ^{[bare URL PDF]}
4. "Long Range Transit Plan" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. 2016. p. 44. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
5. "1 Kenny/Livingston" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
6. "2 E Main/N High" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
7. "UPDATED: COTA to Increase Frequency on 3 Lines, NightOwl to Stay". Columbus Underground. February 4, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
8. "3 Northwest/Harrisburg" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
9. "4 Indianola/Lockbourne" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
10. "5 W 5th Ave/Refugee" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
11. "6 Cleveland/Sullivant" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
12. "7 Mt Vernon" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
13. "8 Karl/S High/Parsons" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
14. "9 W Mound/Brentnell" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
15. "10 E Broad/W Broad" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
16. "11 Bryden/Maize" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
17. "12 McKinley/Fields" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
18. "21 Hilliard Rome" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
19. "22 OSU/Rickenbacker" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
20. "23 James-Stelzer" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
21. "24 Hamilton Rd" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
22. "COTA to realign bus routes". Columbus Messenger. April 20, 2017. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
23. "25 Brice" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
24. "31 Hudson" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
25. "32 N Broadway" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
26. "33 Henderson" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
27. "34 Morse" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
28. "35 Dublin-Granville" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
29. "41 Crosswoods/Polaris" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
30. Ferenchik, Mark (April 14, 2021). "OH: COTA to restore 90% of pre-pandemic service on May 3, including all express lines". The Columbus Dispatch.
31. "42 Sharon Woods" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
32. "43 Westerville" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
33. "44 Easton" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
34. "45 New Albany" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
35. "46 Gahanna" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
36. "51 Reynoldsburg" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
37. "52 Canal Winchester" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
38. "61 Grove City" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
39. "71 Hilliard" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
40. "72 Tuttle" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
41. "73 Dublin" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
42. "74 Smoky Row" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
43. "75 Arlington/1st Ave" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
44. "CMAX" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
45. "102 Polaris Pkwy/N High" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
46. "Night Owl" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
47. Ferenchik, Mark (February 5, 2020). "COTA keeping Night Owl bus service". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
48. "COTA AirConnect" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
49. "COTA no longer provides direct service to airport". The Lantern. November 26, 2019. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
50. "SmartRide New Albany" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
51. "GREAT: Groveport Rickenbacker Employee Access Transit" (PDF). Central Ohio Transit Authority. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
52. "COTA Plus – COTA".
53. "2019 Annual Report". Central Ohio Transit Authority. 2019. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
54. "Zoo Bus". Central Ohio Transit Authority. Archived from the original on May 15, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
55. "BUSES, CAR POOLS SEE SURGE - Record-high gas prices likely caused sudden rise in ridership, official says". The Columbus Dispatch. May 15, 2004.
56. Warren, Brett (May 5, 2014). "Free CBUS Downtown Circulator Launches". Columbus Underground. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
57. Ferenchik, Mark (May 31, 2018). "AirConnect ridership low, but COTA officials confident it will increase". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
58. "Transit System Redesign". Retrieved March 30, 2020.
59. Schmitt, Angie (August 14, 2018). "The Columbus Bus Network Redesign Boosted Ridership". Streetsblog USA. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
60. "New COTA bus line promises faster service across town". WBNS-10TV. January 1, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
61. Weyrich, Lydia (November 25, 2019). "COTA No Longer Provides Direct Service to Airport". The Lantern. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
62. "COTA Restores Express Routes For Commuters". WOSU News. May 3, 2021. Retrieved June 3, 2021.

External links

• Official website
• System map