If you’ve ever screamed into the void about I-71 traffic, wondered why Columbus still doesn’t have a subway, or dreamed of a monorail gliding over High Street — this is for you.
The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) just announced 11 major transportation projects vying for state funding through ODOT’s TRAC (Transportation Review Advisory Council), and they’re asking the public to help prioritize them. That means your voice can help decide which big infrastructure bets get made.
These aren’t just minor upgrades — they’re region-defining projects. We’re talking a $163 million overhaul of I-70 interchanges, a new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line along East Main Street, and big expansions around places like Sunbury Parkway and Alum Creek Drive, all meant to prepare for the 3.15 million people expected to call Central Ohio home by 2050.
Here are a few standout projects:
- East Main BRT: COTA wants to build a 13.6-mile rapid bus line through Columbus, Bexley, Whitehall, and Reynoldsburg — complete with dedicated lanes, new stations, and a park-and-ride.
- Lane Avenue / SR 315 Interchange: The city is reimagining this crucial corridor near Ohio State’s Innovation District.
- Alum Creek Drive Widening: Think better freight access, safer sidewalks, and replaced bridges over Big Walnut Creek.
- Downtown Ramp Up: More pieces of the tangled I-70/I-71 interchange are getting rebuilt, including a new Main Street bridge — all synced with COTA’s LinkUS transit plans.
More details on all 11 projects are at morpc.org/funding, and if you’ve got opinions (and we know you do), you can email comments to trac@morpc.org by August 8.
It’s rare that you get a say in how a city’s roads and transportation will look 10 or 20 years from now. So if you care about transit, traffic, or just want to make sure your neighborhood isn’t forgotten, this is your moment.
Featured image via COTA (Facebook)
