COTA’s fall schedule takes effect Monday, Sept. 7, and there are some big changes coming.
A brand-new Line 30 will run from Hilliard through Upper Arlington to Ohio State and Downtown, Line 1 is splitting in two and stretching north into Dublin, Line 32 is getting shorter, and the Dublin Park and Ride is moving. If you ride any of those, or catch the Zoo Bus from Dublin, here’s what changes.
The new Line 30 Hilliard-OSU
Line 30 connects Hilliard, Upper Arlington, OSU and Downtown on a single bus, with no transfer. It runs every 30 minutes, seven days a week. Along the way it serves Kingsdale Shopping Center, the Wexner Medical Center and OSU’s Carmenton Innovation District before continuing Downtown.
COTA is calling it one of the first routes shaped by its Short-Range Transit Plan, the agency’s roadmap for bus service from 2027 to 2031. The plan looks at where riders are going and where needs are, and a Hilliard-to-campus ride without a Downtown transfer was one of them.
Line 1 splits and reaches Dublin
Line 1 Kenny/Livingston becomes two lines: Line 1 Kenny and Line 1 Livingston. Both run every 15 minutes. The line is also extended to Ohio State Outpatient Care Dublin, with buses every 30 minutes between Carriage Place and the Dublin stop. Every other trip runs between Riverside Hospital and Downtown.
That extension is how Dublin riders keep a one-seat ride to campus and Downtown, since the new Line 30 doesn’t go to Dublin.
Line 32 gets shorter
Line 32 N Broadway no longer serves anything west of Kingsdale Shopping Center. It now runs between Kingsdale and Easton Transit Center only, but still every 60 minutes. The western stretch it drops is picked up by Line 30.
Lines 21, 22 and 24 get minor schedule adjustments meant to improve on-time performance. Check your specific trip before Monday if you ride one of them.
Dublin Park and Ride is moving
Dublin’s Park and Ride is relocating this fall to the corner of Dale Drive and Bridge Park Avenue, and the current lot closes as part of the move. Riders can park free in the Theodore Garage on Mooney Street, just off Dale Drive, while they ride.
That includes anyone catching the Zoo Bus to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium from Dublin. If that’s your usual zoo routine, the garage on Mooney Street is the new starting point.
What to do before Monday
Sept. 7 is also Labor Day, so double-check your trip before you head out that morning. The details are on COTA’s service changes page. COTA changes service three times a year, on the first Monday of January, May and September, and the public comment meetings for the January round are already set for Sept. 17 and Sept. 22.
