COTA faces driver shortages, adjusts services

Lauren Van Niel
Wed, 29 Sep 2021 00:32:31 +0000
Area, Campus, Instagram Page, Local, News, bus, bus systems, Central Ohio Transit Authority, Columbus, columbus area, cota, COVID-19, decrease, limited workforce, line reduction, ohio state, operators, operators increase, reduction, routes, schedule, spring, students, University District Area, workforce

The COTA bus system has been experiencing staffing shortages, leading to a reduction in schedules for certain lines this month. Credit: Lauren Van Niel | Lantern Reporter

In addition to the fuel that powers the Central Ohio Transit Authority bus system, there is a workforce that guarantees patrons will arrive at their destination on time.

However, recent challenges within the workforce are changing that.?

The COTA bus system has been experiencing staffing shortages, leading to a reduction in schedules for certain lines this month in light of the pandemic, Asyline Rodriguez, director of government affairs for COTA, said in an email.?

“The current number of trained, available operators is forcing us to make complex decisions about our service while taking into account the workload and stress of our dedicated people on the front lines,” Rodriguez said.?

The operator count has decreased since March 2020, Jeff Pullin, public and media relations manager for COTA, said. There are currently 637 bus operators, but COTA hopes to reach its goal of 700 operators by spring 2022.?

Pullin said the frequent lines that run include 1, 2, 4, 5, 8 and 9, which had a planned service change that began in September and will continue into late fall. The lines around the university area are 1, 2 and 8.?

The COTA bus system services central Ohio and the greater Columbus area, which includes over 1.2 million residents, according to the website. Its current hours of operation are 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Pullin said the company underwent adjustments in April 2020, including a hiring freeze which has since ended and hiring as training of operators resumed during the summer.??

“It has made it a challenge for us to build our service back to what it was,” Pullin said.??

Pullin said he hopes COTA will be able to provide more frequency and expand service hours with more operators soon.??

“COTA will continue to make strategic adjustments to ease the burden on our front line workers and improve service reliability,” Pullin said.