The Long-Range Transit Plan (LRTP) is a comprehensive strategy for enhancing significantly the public transit system for the central Ohio region over the next 23 years. Utilizing a variety of methods to ensure public participation, the LRTP has been developed to respond to the growing transportation needs of the central Ohio region by providing an expanded, reliable, and safe transit system. In every major metropolitan area, investments in the transportation infrastructure, including public transit, is vital for ensuring economic vitality and improved quality of life.

1. Proposed 2012-2035
Long-Range Transit Plan
Phase II
Public Comment Meetings
February to March 2012

2. Housekeeping Items
 Silence all cell phones.
 Be considerate of all meeting attendees and COTA staff.
 When it is your turn to make a comment or ask a question about
COTA’s Long-Range Transit Plan, remain at your seat and
you will be called upon.
 Comments and questions are limited to two minutes per person.
 Ask one question at a time so the appropriate COTA staff
member may address your comment.
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3. Agenda
 Welcome–Introductions and Purpose of Meeting
 Phase I–First draft
 Phase II–Final draft
 Presentation–Overview of COTA’s Draft Long-Range Transit Plan (LRTP)
 Next Steps–Review the next steps in the LRTP update process
 Display Boards–Review display boards and provide comments
 Wrap-Up–Final remarks and Q&A
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4. Phase II Public Meeting Dates
Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012 Monday, March 5, 2012
William J. Lhota Building Columbus Public Library
33 N. High St., 43215 Franklinton Branch
12 p.m. 1061 W. Town St., 43222
6 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2012 Thursday, March 8,
2012
Calvary Baptist Church Columbus Public Library
3865 N. High St., 43214 Parsons Avenue Branch
6 p.m. 845 Parson Ave., 43206
6 p.m.
Thursday, March 1, 2012 Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Columbus Public Library William J. Lhota Building
Martin Luther King Branch 33 N. High St., 43215
1600 E. Long St., 43203 6 p.m.
6 p.m.
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5. Need for Plan Update
 U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) requires the Mid-Ohio
Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) to update the Metropolitan
Transportation Plan every four years.
 This includes all transportation modes, including transit.
 It is necessary to update the existing 2006-2030 Long-Range Transit
Plan to prioritize community needs.
 Respond to changes in current and projected:
 Economic conditions
 Employment–27 percent increase by 2035
 Population–28 percent increase by 2035
 Development patterns
 Transportation challenges
• Mobility
• Congestion–33 percent increase
by 2035
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6. Timeline–Major Milestones
 Sept. 2011: Six public meetings between Sept. 1 and Sept. 27
 Sept.-Nov. 2011: Adjust plans to reflect public input and develop
First Draft
 Dec. 2011-Feb. 2012: Public Comment Meetings on the First
Draft, draft plan provided to COTA Board for review
and comment; develop Final Draft
 Feb. 2012: Final Draft to COTA Board for review and comment
 March 2012: Final Draft public comment period held in
coordination with MORPC’s 2012-2035
Metropolitan Transportation Plan Open House
 April 2012: Submit Final Plan to Board for adoption
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7. Goals of the LRTP
 Provide safe, reliable, convenient, affordable and user-friendly
transportation
 Provide transportation alternatives to residents with special needs
 Manage public resources effectively and efficiently
 Expand support for public transportation and encourage transit supportive
land use
 Promote environmentally sustainable initiatives
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8. What we heard–Public Involvement Phase I
 More Local and Crosstown service to suburbs
 Implement weekend service on select lines
 Improve service coverage to neighborhoods within I-270
 Real-time information on bus schedules
 Remove route deviations to simplify line alignment
 Investigate additional corridors for bus rapid transit service
 Use smaller buses on lower-ridership lines
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9. Industry Information and External Factors
 External Factors:
 Volatile gas prices
 High unemployment rate
 Fluctuations in sales tax revenue
 Unknown federal and state funding levels
 Industry Comparison: Change in bus ridership between third quarter
2010 and 2011–American Public Transit Association
 Columbus (COTA): +10.75%
 Cincinnati (SORTA): +1.34%
 Cleveland (GCRTA): +5.16%
 Charlotte (CATS): +6.82%
 Indianapolis (IndyGo): +9.68%
 Memphis (MATA): -6.79%
 San Antonio (VIA): +7.73%
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10. Industry Information and External Factors
 As gas prices rise, ridership rises.
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11. Industry Information and External Factors
 Despite a high unemployment rate, COTA’s ridership continues to
increase.
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12. Industry Information and External Factors
 In a 2010 APTA survey, 71 percent of agencies saw no growth or a
decrease in local or regional funding.
 In 2010, nearly 80 percent of public transit systems have either raised
fares or cut service to reduce projected budget gaps.
*Source–American Public Transportation Association (APTA) (2011)
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13. Surface Transportation Bill Update
 In September 2009, the most recent transportation act, the Safe,
Accountable, Flexible, Efficient, Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for
Users (SAFETEA-LU) expired and has been funded through temporary
extensions.
 Currently, three different proposals for transportation funding are being
considered:
 President’s Proposal: Increases dedicated public transportation
funding to $10.8 billion, $233 million over current levels.
 Senate Proposal: Continues dedicated public transportation funding
at 2012 levels.
 House Proposal: Discontinues dedicated public transportation
funding through the Highway Trust Fund. A new Alternative
Transportation Account would be created, but funding for the account
has not yet been identified. An amendment is proposed to remove
this change.
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14. Long-Range Transit Plan Financial Assumptions
 COTA’s 2012-2035 LRTP sales tax projections are less than previously
assumed in the 2006-2030 LRTP.
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15. Long-Range Transit Plan Financial Assumptions
 COTA’s cost per service hour has remained level as costs of other
agencies rise.
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16. Long-Range Transit Plan Financial Assumptions
 All service expansion and projects must be within COTA’s projected
financial capacity.
 Funding level assumptions are as follows:
 0.25 percent permanent sales tax
 0.25 percent temporary sales tax levy is renewed every 10 years
 Sales tax grows with inflation
 Regularly-scheduled fare increases every three years to keep pace
with inflation and rising costs of providing service
 Federal and state assistance programs continue at current levels
 COTA will continue to pursue discretionary grant opportunities for
projects that lie outside of COTA’s financial projections.
 Financial projections are based upon current and projected economic
conditions and other external factors.
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17. Expansion of Service
 Increase in hours of service between 2006 and 2035 are displayed
below.
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18. Components of the Plan
 Six components of the Long-Range Service Plan
 Fixed-route bus service
 Mobility services
 Intelligent transportation systems
 Strategic investments
 Customer service
 Other service improvements
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19. Fixed-Route Bus Service
 Conventional service with fixed schedules and alignments
 Local, Crosstown, Express and LINK
 Key areas of improvement:
• Improved service frequency
• Expanded coverage
• Expanded hours of operation
• Decreased travel times
New and/or Expanded Bus Lines by Service Type
Bus Route Type 2016 Line Numbers
Local 2 1,6
Express 8
28,29,40x,43x,50x,55a,59x,67
Crosstown 7 83, 84,85,89,93,94,97
Selected Alternative for Contingent upon approval and
1
Northeast Corridor funding
Total 18
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20. Fixed-Route Bus Service
 Bus replacement and expansion:
 Increase fleet size by 19
percent by 2016
 Replace approximately 1/12 of
the fleet every year through 40-foot diesel bus
2035
 Purchase compressed natural
gas (CNG) buses, replacing the
current diesel fleet
 Maintain COTA’s six hybrid
CNG bus
diesel-electric buses
Bus quantities are subject to change based upon
approval and implementation of the Cleveland
Avenue Bus Rapid Transit and financial
conditions.
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21. Mobility Services
 Demand-response service to disabled, elderly and low-income
individuals
 Service will increase by 40 percent by 2015 and 50 percent by 2030
 COTA’s non-ADA service will expand to provide more service for
people with special transit needs in the community
 Mainstream will emerge as a one-stop resource for trip planning
 Mainstream will cultivate more community partnerships to maximize
available funding and resources
 An ongoing service evaluation system will continue to review
existing operations, and new service delivery methods implemented
to improve both service and effectiveness
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22. Mobility Services
 Expand Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) service in conjunction with
growth of fixed-route service
 Expand fleet by two vehicles every year between 2012 and 2020 and by
one vehicle every year between 2021 and 2035, which is an overall
increase of 55 percent in fleet size
 Replace, on average, 15 vehicles a year
between 2012 and 2020 and 20 vehicles
a year between 2021 and 2035
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23. Technology Initiatives—ITS
 Alternative fare collection
 Off-board fare collection
 Digital payment methods
 Traveler information systems
 Real-time information
 Fleet maintenance Real-time information
 Vehicle component monitoring
 Traffic signal priority
 Automatic Passenger Counters (APC)
 Maintain approximately 20 percent
of fleet with APC units Traffic signal priority
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24. Strategic Investments
 Potential transit centers, park and rides, travel corridor
investments and other facilities
Delawanda Park and Ride Expansion
McKinley Operations Improvements including CNG
Northern Lights Transit Center concept
Northern Lights Conce
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25. Strategic Investments
 Northeast Corridor Alternatives Analysis
 Study to improve transit service along
the Cleveland Avenue corridor
 Initial evaluation of transit alternatives
recommends bus rapid transit in
mixed traffic using one of four
potential alignments
 Study is scheduled to conclude by
July 2012
 If approved by FTA, COTA will
pursue funding for the next phases:
• Project development
• Project construction
• Projected opening of 2016
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26. Customer Services
 Continue to keep brand of logo and buses modern
 COTA Pass Sales
 Continue to provide quality customer service
 Continue All-for-One Programs
 OSU, CCAD and Columbus City Schools
 Maintain and improve website and online presence
 Google Trip Planner
 Online real-time customer service
 Mobile experience
 Social media
 Real-time data
 Continue public outreach efforts
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27. Other Service Improvements
 Buses on shoulder
 Green initiatives
 CNG buses, solar lighting at stops,
LEED facilities
 Continue to purchase approximately 60
passenger shelters a year for replacement
and expansion COTA bus on shoulder example–I-70 East
 Improve accessibility to passenger shelters
and stops
 Bicycle amenities
 Sidewalk connections
Bus stop with shelter
 Bus Stop Service Improvement Project
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28. Next Steps
 Incorporate public comments into plan
 Complete recommended final plan by April 1
 Present recommended 2012 Long-Range Transit Plan to COTA’s Board
for adoption in April
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29. Questions
Questions or comments?
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