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Hero For Christ

Columbus Transportation Options



5/30/07

Given the nearness (2015 --just eight years away) of the point of no return for global warming, it seems vitally important to think of creative new ways to stop pollution.

On the principle of acting locally and immediately, I've decided to focus on my home, Columbus. As the largest city in one of the most polluting states of the most polluting country in the world, there's definitely an opportunity for us to take leadership.

One obvious place to start is with our cars. Like most places in the Midwest, Columbus suffers from urban sprawl and inadequate public transportation. There are initiatives under way to change things, but they may take years and billions of dollars to implement. What can ordinary citizens do in the meanwhile?

Car Pools and Ride Sharing.

Especially with gas prices skyrocketing, this is a good way to save money and the environment at the same time. I'm currently looking into starting my own local carpool/rideshare site, but here is what is already available for the Columbus area. Remember, if you contact people for rides, use common sense and never ride with someone you don't trust.

http://www.erideshare.com/carp...;dstate=OH
http://columbus.craigslist.org/rid/
http://www.rideboard.com/searc...search.php
http://ridesolutions.morpc.org/
https://rideboard.admsrv.ohio.edu/rideboard/index.jsp (For Ohio University Students only)
http://oncampus.osu.edu/poll/ (For Ohio State University Faculty & Staff only)

Other Current Options

1. Walk - Good for health, free, non-polluting.
2. Bike - Many people don't realize that Columbus has an extensive network of bike and pedestrian paths (LINK 1, LINK 2) criss-crossing the city and running all the way from the outerbelt to downtown.
3. Take the Bus - People in Columbus need to conquer their fear of COTA.

For intercity bus travel:
http://www.lakefrontlines.com/
Megabus
Greyhound

Some Brainstorms

When I lived in Kenya there were private vehicles (minivans) that would run the bus routes and pick up passengers. They tended to be faster and more frequent than the buses --it seems like there might be an opportunity for some enterprising person to fill that same niche here.

I've also thought a lot about the parking problem in the Short North. If I was the SNBA, instead of building parking garages (or spending millions on arches!), I would subsidize a private shuttle that would run up and down High Street during peak hours. That way people could park downtown or in the Campus Gateway and get a free ride to the Short North. That could also help revitalize downtown. You could probably get the Arena District and the Gateway to buy in as well --maybe even extend it to the Brewery District.

Another possibility along the same lines would be to strike a deal with the taxi companies. Participating businesses would give out vouchers for free trips between downtown and the Short North. It would be a win-win: free parking downtown for customers, guaranteed income for the taxi companies, and a solution to the parking issue for the Short North.

We should also look into Curitiba-style Bus Rapid Transit

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