CMAX runs from Downtown Columbus to Westerville, primarily along Cleveland Avenue and High Street.[2] The route is 15.6 miles (25.1 km) long.[3] The trip is estimated to take about 56 minutes, depending on the time of day.[4]
Buses operating the CMAX route have unique livery, and were among the first in the system to include USB charging ports and onboard Wi-Fi.[5] The fleet includes buses 1619-20 (two 40-ft. 2016 GilligBRT PlusCNG-fueled buses) and 1714-1726 (13 of the same type, issued in 2017).[6]
BRT attributes
The service is estimated to be 20 percent faster than conventional service, due to its use of limited stops, dedicated bus lanes on its High Street portion during rush hours, and utilizing transit signal priority.[2][7] Most of the stops have covered shelters and information terminals with real-time bus arrival times. Some of the stations feature local art.[5] Between downtown and Northland Transit Center, the buses operate with a 10-minute frequency on weekday mornings and afternoons, 15 minutes during off-peak times, and 30 minutes on weekends.[4]
The CMAX line has not been assessed by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), which classifies BRT lines. An individual assessment following ITDP's BRT Standard rated the CMAX line in its "Other" category, failing to meet the "Bronze", "Silver", or "Gold" standards for BRT transport.[8] In 2019, TransitColumbus called the service a "great first step", though it criticized the service's lack of bus lanes or busways, enclosed stations, ADA accessibility, and off-board payment, calling it moreso "BRT-lite".[9]The Columbus Dispatch likewise separated the service from "true bus rapid-transit lines" by noting CMAX's lane-sharing with other traffic and its lack of larger stations.[10]
A CMAX bus shelter
Countdown clock and information terminal
History
The CMAX route primarily operates on Cleveland Avenue, on a former interurban and streetcar route. The Columbus & Westerville Railway Company was granted the right to operate an interurban railroad there in 1893; it later became the Columbus Central Railway Company, and was acquired by the Columbus Railway Company in 1899.[11]
CMAX was planned as early as 2010, when the Central Ohio Transit Authority applied for a Federal Transit Administration grant.[4] CMAX was created with $48.6 million in funding, including $37.4 million from the federal government grant. It was created to help reduce traffic congestion on Cleveland Avenue, bring economic activity, and increase job and healthcare access to low-income and minority neighborhoods on Cleveland Avenue, including Milo-Grogan and Linden.[7][5][12] The service complemented and improved COTA's second-busiest route, Local Line 1 Cleveland (present-day route 6).[4] The service began operation on January 1, 2018, and offered free fares in its first week of service.[5]
CMAX ridership is projected to increase in the future. One upgrade COTA proposed in 2016, before the line's opening, was for a future high capacity transit corridor for CMAX. It would re-align the route to utilize the former Mt. Vernon Pennsylvania Railroad line. The line could be used for a dedicated busway or for rail, serving the growing populations in Westerville and Polaris.[13]
cmax, this, article, about, rapid, transit, line, columbus, ohio, other, uses, cmax, rapid, transit, service, central, ohio, operated, central, ohio, transit, authority, cota, line, begins, downtown, columbus, traveling, northeast, westerville, central, ohio, . This article is about the bus rapid transit line in Columbus Ohio For other uses see Cmax CMAX is a bus rapid transit BRT service in Central Ohio operated by the Central Ohio Transit Authority COTA The line begins in Downtown Columbus traveling northeast to Westerville CMAX is Central Ohio s first bus rapid transit line it began operation in 2018 CMAXOverviewOperatorCentral Ohio Transit AuthorityVehicleGillig BRT Plus CNG fueled 40 ft busesStatusOperationalBegan serviceJanuary 1 2018 2018 01 01 RouteRoute typeBus rapid transitLocaleColumbus OhioCommunities servedDowntown Columbus Milo Grogan Linden Brandywine Forest Park Minerva Park Northern Woods WestervilleStartE Mound St amp 4th St Downtown Columbus ViaMound St High St Nationwide Blvd Cleveland Ave Polaris Pkwy EndOhioHealth Westerville Medical Campus Westerville Length15 6 mi 25 1 km ServiceFrequency10 15 minutes Downtown to Northland Transit Center 30 minutes Northland Transit Center to OhioHealth Journey timeAbout 56 minutesOperates7 days per weekRidership1 235 000 2019 20 5 1 TimetableCMAX timetableMapCMAX route mapRoute mapLegendLocal serviceOhioHealthAfrica amp PolarisPolaris amp Africa 102 Westar PlaceWestar BlvdCounty LineAlum CreekMainOld Coach340 S ClevelandSt Ann sCooperSchrockI 270Community ParkHome AcreDeewoodBlendon WoodsFujiSR 161Northland TC 35 WallcrestMorse 34 LehnerCookeNorthern Lights P amp RHuy 32 Oakland ParkWeberGenesseeHudson 11 31 24th17th11th 8 I 715th 22 2ndI 670Fort HayesI 670Columbus StateNaghten amp 5thConvention CenterNationwideLongBroadStateColumbus CommonsMain amp HighMound amp HighMound amp 4thThis diagram viewtalkedit Contents 1 Route and fleet 2 BRT attributes 3 History 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksRoute and fleet Edit CMAX route map CMAX runs from Downtown Columbus to Westerville primarily along Cleveland Avenue and High Street 2 The route is 15 6 miles 25 1 km long 3 The trip is estimated to take about 56 minutes depending on the time of day 4 Landmarks and parks along the line include Franklin University the Franklin County Government Center the South High Commercial Historic District Columbus Commons the Ohio Statehouse on Capitol Square the High and Gay Streets Historic District Sensenbrenner Park Battelle Hall and the Greater Columbus Convention Center the Central Ohio Fire Museum Columbus State Community College Fort Hayes Mount Carmel St Ann s Hospital Sharon Woods Metro Park and the OhioHealth Westerville Medical Campus Buses operating the CMAX route have unique livery and were among the first in the system to include USB charging ports and onboard Wi Fi 5 The fleet includes buses 1619 20 two 40 ft 2016 Gillig BRT Plus CNG fueled buses and 1714 1726 13 of the same type issued in 2017 6 BRT attributes EditThe service is estimated to be 20 percent faster than conventional service due to its use of limited stops dedicated bus lanes on its High Street portion during rush hours and utilizing transit signal priority 2 7 Most of the stops have covered shelters and information terminals with real time bus arrival times Some of the stations feature local art 5 Between downtown and Northland Transit Center the buses operate with a 10 minute frequency on weekday mornings and afternoons 15 minutes during off peak times and 30 minutes on weekends 4 The CMAX line has not been assessed by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy ITDP which classifies BRT lines An individual assessment following ITDP s BRT Standard rated the CMAX line in its Other category failing to meet the Bronze Silver or Gold standards for BRT transport 8 In 2019 TransitColumbus called the service a great first step though it criticized the service s lack of bus lanes or busways enclosed stations ADA accessibility and off board payment calling it moreso BRT lite 9 The Columbus Dispatch likewise separated the service from true bus rapid transit lines by noting CMAX s lane sharing with other traffic and its lack of larger stations 10 A CMAX bus shelter Countdown clock and information terminalHistory EditThe CMAX route primarily operates on Cleveland Avenue on a former interurban and streetcar route The Columbus amp Westerville Railway Company was granted the right to operate an interurban railroad there in 1893 it later became the Columbus Central Railway Company and was acquired by the Columbus Railway Company in 1899 11 CMAX was planned as early as 2010 when the Central Ohio Transit Authority applied for a Federal Transit Administration grant 4 CMAX was created with 48 6 million in funding including 37 4 million from the federal government grant It was created to help reduce traffic congestion on Cleveland Avenue bring economic activity and increase job and healthcare access to low income and minority neighborhoods on Cleveland Avenue including Milo Grogan and Linden 7 5 12 The service complemented and improved COTA s second busiest route Local Line 1 Cleveland present day route 6 4 The service began operation on January 1 2018 and offered free fares in its first week of service 5 CMAX ridership is projected to increase in the future One upgrade COTA proposed in 2016 before the line s opening was for a future high capacity transit corridor for CMAX It would re align the route to utilize the former Mt Vernon Pennsylvania Railroad line The line could be used for a dedicated busway or for rail serving the growing populations in Westerville and Polaris 13 See also EditBus rapid transit creep List of bus rapid transit systems in the Americas List of COTA bus routesReferences Edit COTA Ridership in 2019 Highest in 31 Years February 19 2020 a b New COTA bus line promises faster service across town WBNS 10TV January 1 2018 Retrieved March 31 2020 COTA Is Launching A Game Changing New Route On January 1 Columbus Navigator December 27 2017 a b c d https www columbus gov uploadedFiles Columbus Departments Development Planning Division Boards and Commissions Columbus Arts Commission Meetings 2015 3 2030 202015 Cleveland 20Ave 20 20CMAX 20CAC 20description pdf bare URL PDF a b c d COTA offering quicker trip with new CMAX route WCMH TV January 1 2018 Retrieved January 6 2018 https d2rfd3nxvhnf29 cloudfront net 2019 08 Connected 20Vehicle 20OBU 20Integrator 20RFP pdf bare URL PDF a b Honig Esther 3 January 2018 New CMAX Bus Line Offers Quicker Commute On Cleveland Avenue radio wosu org Rating COTA s Proposed Cleveland Avenue BRT September 17 2012 From the Newsroom The Columbus Dispatch iHeartRadio Rouan Rick Would you pay higher taxes to bring rail rapid transit to Columbus The Columbus Dispatch Hooper Osman Castle 1920 History of the City of Columbus Ohio Columbus Cleveland The Memorial Publishing Company http onlinepubs trb org onlinepubs tcrp docs TCRP H56 Final Report pdf bare URL PDF Archived copy PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2019 05 14 Retrieved 2020 09 02 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint archived copy as title link External links Edit Media related to CMAX at Wikimedia Commons Official website Portals Buses Ohio Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title CMAX amp oldid 1112439843, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
