City of Columbus, COTA Planning Temporary Dedicated Bus, Bike Lane Test

Second Mobility Innovation Tests launching Game Day Mobility Lane, November 23 for Ohio State vs. Penn State Football Game

COLUMBUS — The City of Columbus and Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) today announced the “Game Day Mobility Lane” as the second in a series of Mobility Innovation Tests. With the goal of testing different ways to improve mobility in Columbus, the one-day test lane will launch on Saturday, November 23 in conjunction with The Ohio State University and the Pennsylvania State University football game.

Starting at 10:00 a.m., the southbound curb lane along North High Street from Dodridge Street to Lane Avenue will be dedicated to bus, bike and scooter traffic only. Cones will mark off the area. Immediately after the start of the football game at noon, the cones will move to change the northbound flow of traffic. At that time the northbound curb lane will be dedicated to bus, bike and scooter traffic. The northbound traffic flow change will be in place during the game and for two hours after the game ends.

The “Game Day Mobility Lane” test is the second study in the Mobility Innovation Tests series of planned tactical urbanism projects. These are temporary, low-cost improvements to streets that are made to try out new traffic patterns, gather feedback and collect data.

“With a million people coming to our region in the coming decades, now is the time to rethink how our roads and transportation system work to give our residents convenient, affordable choices. The Mobility Innovation Tests provide critical information to help us understand how to better connect residents to education, jobs, healthcare, and even OSU football,” said Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin. “We know from other cities that dedicated lanes make a transit system more efficient and effective. I’m excited by our partnership with President Joanna Pinkerton and the COTA team to continue innovating to improve our transportation system. ”

The Game Day Mobility Lane test will be analyzed through quantitative and qualitative tools. Lessons learned will inform how Columbus can move more people faster and could serve as a model for future tests.

“The Columbus region is facing the challenge to move people more efficiently and safely as we continue to grow,” said COTA President/CEO Joanna M. Pinkerton. “We appreciate the City of Columbus and Council President Hardin for their support in testing dedicated mobility lanes in highly congested areas. COTA is committed to leading efforts to provide more mobility solutions for people in Central Ohio. There are many lessons we can learn from major cities that use dedicated lanes to relieve traffic, and we appreciate community members trying new things with us. We are all working together to Move Every Life Forward.”

The public is encouraged to pledge to ride via bus, bike or scooter during the test at COTA.com/Pledge. COTA customers can use the COTA Connector app, available in the Apple Store and Google Play for cash-free payment on all buses.

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Background:

Earlier this year a group of public, private and non-profit partners released the Insight2050 Corridor Concepts report. The analysis models the myriad of financial, environmental and health benefits that could result from focusing new housing and jobs along high-capacity transit corridors. This vision for growth has generated notable excitement from community partners like COTA, The Ohio State University and the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission.



As the community collectively pursues this long-term vision, the City of Columbus and COTA are partnering for a series of Mobility Innovation Tests (MIT). Using the principles of tactical urbanism, these tests will help COTA and the City evaluate new ways to move more people faster. The first test was on Third Street downtown. It was based one of the winning ideas at 2018’s Purple Aisle Transportation Innovation Weekend. By dedicating the curb lane to buses, bikes and scooters, COTA saw a 25 percent time savings and closed their time range to travel the corridor from 3-24 minutes to 2-10 minutes. Almost 75 percent of bus riders and more than 60 percent of bicycle riders surveyed supported making the Third Street shared mobility lane permanent.

Learn more at columbus.gov/council/mobility-innovation.