The Central Ohio Transit Authority is expanding a program in which busses are allowed to drive on the inside shoulder of major highways.
Jim Letizia reports.
Starting Monday September 7, COTA buses will be allowed to move past stalled traffic on I-670 between the airport and Downtown. That could mean faster commutes for riders on routes to Gahanna, Easton, and New Albany along a route that has more than 100 thousand vehicles a day. The decision will be left to each COTA driver. COTA hopes the move, which will affect primarly express routes, will boost ridership. The Ohio Department of Transportation will start installing signs alerting drivers about shoulder usage next week. ODOT says because the shoulders are built to withstand the weight of tow trucks and emergency vehicles, they will be able to withstand the weight of the busses. The program started as a pilot on eastbound I-70 in 2006.