Timeline: LinkUS transit improvements will start in 2025
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A planned Bus Rapid Transit station on Alum Creek Drive. Rendering: Courtesy of LinkUS Columbus
Now that Central Ohio voters have approved an $8 billion mobility plan called LinkUS, the next 25 years of upgrades to the region's public transportation system are taking shape.
Why it matters: The vote doubled the sales tax that funds the majority of the Central Ohio Transit Authority, a boost that will pay for hundreds of miles of new paths and trails, additional bus lines and the area's first rapid-transit bus corridors.
State of play: LinkUS improvements won't happen overnight. The new sales tax goes into effect in April.
- But planning is underway, and COTA offered a rough timeline.
- COTA generally implements service changes in January, May or September to plan around the OSU school year.
⌚ May or September 2025: Increased frequency and expanded service hours beyond the current cutoff of 11:30pm.
👷 Late 2025: Crews will break ground on the first Bus Rapid Transit project on West Broad Street, an expedited line with fewer stops, dedicated lanes and traffic signal priority.
- Construction will follow on BRT lines for East Main Street and connecting downtown Columbus with Dublin, as will planning for the fourth and fifth lines.
✅ Throughout 2025: The COTA board of trustees will approve and schedule upcoming sidewalk, trail and bikeway construction projects.
- See an interactive map of proposed paths here.
🚌 2029 or later: COTA hopes to reach 24-hour service on high-ridership bus lines.
🚲 By 2030: The first three Bus Rapid Transit lines will be operational.
- Around 150 miles of new sidewalks, bikeways and trails will be completed.
📈 By 2050: COTA plans to add eight COTA//Plus rideshare zones; 14 new or improved transit lines; two additional Bus Rapid Transit lines in unspecified areas; and 500 miles of new sidewalks, bikeways and trails.
The big picture: LinkUS project planning accounts for rapid population growth.
- The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission expects the area's population to exceed 3 million by 2050.
What they're saying: "We're not in a place where we can pause much longer on improving the system," COTA spokesperson Jeff Pullin tells us.
- "Cities like Austin and Nashville have waited, and they're telling us, 'Don't wait.'"
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect that a new sales tax rate goes into effect in April (not January, as COTA officials previously stated).