Columbus, Ohio

Columbus is home to several colleges. The Ohio State University is the largest.
Other area colleges and their locations include: Columbus College of Art and Design (Downtown), Capital University (Bexley) and School of Law (Downtown), Columbus State Community College (Downtown), Otterbein College (Westerville), Ohio Dominican University (East Columbus), Franklin University (Downtown),
Denison University (Granville, OH), and Ohio Wesleyan University (Delaware, OH).

This city is also home to several neighborhoods that support a car-free lifestyle.
Downtown Columbus is surrounded by mature, adjacent, middle-class neighborhoods that
offer a wide range of retail and professional services.
The Short North, in particular, is a neighborhood that offers virtually everything a person needs
in life within walking distance. The few retail services not available in the Short North, for example, Target,
are a close bus or cab ride away.

One of the best things about Columbus is the cost of neighborhoods that support a
car-free lifestyle.

Housing in Columbus is less expensive than many other cities’ car-free style neighborhoods.

Columbus has a variety of neighborhoods where one can live conveniently without a car.
The Short North has the best transportation, retail, and professional services of these neighborhoods.
Because Columbus is a “white collar” town and has not gone through “boom and bust” cycles like many other
Midwestern cities, the old housing stock is very well preserved. Columbus’ housing stock has attracted a
great deal of investment since the early 1960s.
In-town cab service is excellent. Downtown has several car rental agencies.
Eight bus lines with frequent schedules serve the Short North. High Street buses in the Short North run every two to five minutes during the work week. Of-peak service is usable without a bus schedule as well.

Where is public transportation available?
Bus service is available throughout the city of Columbus, as well several communities outside the city:
The service area includes Franklin County, plus the cities of Columbus, Bexley, Gahanna, Grandview Heights, Grove City, Hilliard, Reynoldsburg, Upper Arlington, Westerville, Whitehall, Worthington.
Service also is provided to Dublin, New Albany, Canal Winchester, Obetz, Groveport and Marble Cliff.
Portions of Delaware, Licking, and Fairfield counties are also part of COTA’s service territory (where COTA-served municipalities extend into those counties).

Most COTA buses (except express routes) operate every day.

What neighborhoods and communities have seven-day transit service?
COTA (Central Ohio Transit Authority) customer service recommends living along
one of the following popular bus routes:
#1 Livingston Ave.; #2 East Main Street or Ohio State University Campus; or, #8 Hamilton Road.

Columbus has several good neighborhoods for car-free living.
Several of these are affordable neighborhoods where a car isn’t needed:
The Short North:
This popular neighborhood, located along North High Street between downtown Columbus and 5th Avenue, is flanked by the walkable, transit friendly neighborhoods of Italian Village and Victorian.
The Short North is an eclectic collection of art galleries, boutiques, nightclubs, restaurants and new housing developments. Facilities and resources include: Goodale Park, a Columbus Metropolitan Library branch, and a full service grocery and pharmacy at Buttles and Neil Avenue.

Key intersections for transit in the Short North include North High Street and 5th Avenue, North High Street and Buttles St.
The Short North is especially recommended for young people moving to Columbus from other cities,
recent college graduates, and families seeking a lifestyle that doesn’t rely on driving to every need.

· Bexley:
This 1920s in-town suburb has great bus and cab service, a wide array of retail services in a downtown setting, a movie theatre, a university, mature trees, a huge Kroger supermarket, and other amenities.

· Grandview Heights:
Here is another 1920s in-town suburb with all of the same amenities as Bexley.

· German Village.
German Village, the priciest neighborhood in central Ohio, was built between 1840 and 1900. It has charming brick streets, sidewalks, and houses, and offers a wide choice of retail and professional services.
It lacks the range of retail found in the Short North, Bexley, and Grandview Heights. Bus service is not as good as in those communities. However, German Village still does a good job of supporting a car-free lifestyle.

COTA buses go almost everywhere in Columbus

Five areas are top choices for visitors without cars to stay, especially if they want to walk or use COTA buses:
Downtown, German Village, Arena District, Ohio State, and, Clintonville.

It’s easy to use transit to commute to work. For example: during peak hours in the Short North, there is
always a bus in view when one goes to a bus stop on High Street. Voters recently doubled the sales tax for the transit authority in Columbus. This increase in tax support comes at a time when in-town living is growing rapidly.

Cycling is very easy in Columbus
Columbus is a flat city with well-maintained streets. This makes cycling very easy.
COTA’s popular Bike ‘N Bus program has welcomed over 100,000 bikes since its introduction in 2005. Cyclists may attach their bikes to the bike racks installed on the front of every COTA coach free of charge.

Columbus is an affordable place to retire
The Short North is super-affordable and close to the community. It’s a hip neighborhood, but there’s room for all ages. “There’s more empty nesters than young hipsters moving back,” says local agent Joe Peffer. One gallery even exhibits works by retired artists.
Short North is close to Ohio State University’s courses, lectures, and legendary football games of Ohio State University.
Grandview Heights is a quieter and more affordable neighborhoodjust a couple miles west of downtown. It’s on a river, close to OSU and has its own strip of restaurants on Grandview Avenue.
For more information about retiring in Columbus, go to this website: money.aol.com/bp_retire?photo=2

Transit user who was car-free for 30 years tells his story:
Cleve Ricksecker, an attorney who serves as Executive Director of two downtown
Business Improvement Districts in Columbus, lived in Columbus without a car for. 30 years.Here is his story:

“I moved to Columbus from Manhattan in 1977 and decided to try living in Columbus without a car.
Thirty years, a divorce, and three school-age children later, I reluctantly purchased my first car after investigating various communal car arrangements without success. This failure to make communal car arrangements is my first car-free set back in Columbus.
“My three children are 9, 11, and 14. Most child-related trips do not require a car. However, certain
activities are difficult to manage without one. Area ice rinks for hockey leagues are located on the city’s outer belt highway. Magnate city schools draw from a 200 square mile area, so my oldest child’s friends tend to be scattered through the city.
“Zipcar (formerly Flexcar)has a presence in Columbus on the Ohio State University campus, which is about 10 blocks(about a mile) from my house. Zipcar locations are just far enough away that they are impractical for me to use for quick trips.
“I still use transit or walk to work each day. My oldest daughter takes public transit to school each day.
All of my kids love taking the bus. The younger ones still view public transit as an amusement ride.
“Raising children in the Short North environment has been a great experience. My kids can walk to 44 movie screens, a public market, a 40-acre park, 200+ retail stores, public school, church, baby sitting jobs, soccer practice, an NHL arena, and the homes of their friends.
“My house is the place where my 14-year old daughter’s friends prefer meeting because it offers them independence. Rather than being tied to their parents’ cars, they can walk to their activities once they are brought to the Short North. This situation is an interesting switch from several years ago.
“When my 14-year old was younger, she preferred visiting her friends who had big yards and in-ground swimming pools. The tables turned when she reached puberty and she and her friends wanted to exercise some independence.”

What You Need to Know

City or Region: Columbus (Franklin County) Ohio
Population: City of Columbus: 733,203, Region: 1,722,670

Transit Provider: Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA)
Phone Number: (614) 228-1776
Customer Service Phone Hours:
Monday-Friday:: 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Saturday-Sunday: 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Holidays: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Web Sites: www.cota.com or,
www.cotagobus.com (for Ohio State University students)

Days and Hours Transit Service Operates:
Monday-Friday: 5:00 a.m. to 11:45 p.m.
Saturday: 6:00 a.m. to 11:45 p.m.
Sunday: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Port Columbus International Airport, on the east side of the city of Columbus near Interstate 670 and Interstate 270, is served by COTA buses.

The Greyhound terminal located downtown: 111 E. Town Street at S. 3rd Street,
is served by COTA buses..

REGIONAL and INTERCITY PROVIDERS
MegaBus goes to: Chicago, Indianapolis, and Cincinnati, Ohio. The website is: www.megabus.com
Megabus has two locations in Columbus:
COTA’s North Express Terminal downtown at W. Spring Street and Wall Street, and
On the Ohio State University campus at Neil Avenue and W. 12th Avenue