The Columbus Streetcar was a proposed
streetcar system to be located in and around
Downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...
. Initially planned to run along High Street, the line would have run for and connected the
Ohio State
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
campus with the
Franklin County Government Center.
As of February 2009, the plan was indefinitely on hold. Discussion took place for a larger scale
light rail system which would run along the streetcar route and also connect the northern part of the city to downtown.
In 2014, the
CBUS free circulator bus began operation on much of the proposed streetcar route.
Plans for a modern system
Initially proposed in a February 2006 State of the City speech by Mayor
Michael Coleman, the system was touted as a tool to connect the various sections of downtown as well as promote development.
On 22 March 2006, the mayor convened a working group consisting of various political and business leaders as well as community stakeholders to investigate the feasibility of returning streetcars to the city.
Initially, three routes were proposed.
A Blue line route would run along High Street from Frankfort Street in
German Village
German Village is a historic neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio, just south of the city's downtown. It was settled in the early-to-mid-19th century by a large number of German immigrants, who at one time comprised as much as a third of the city's ...
to Buttles Avenue in the
Short North
The Short North is a neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio, United States, centered on the main strip of High Street immediately north of the Arena District and extending until just south of the University District and Ohio State University. It is an ea ...
. A Red line route would extend the blue line north to 11th Avenue adjacent to the Ohio State campus. A Green Line (initially called the Z-line) would run in a Z pattern from the
Arena District to the Discovery District around the Main Library. After the results of the economic study showed 3,000 new downtown jobs, 300 hotel rooms and 1,500 new housing units from the most conservative standpoint, the working group voted overwhelmingly in favor of pursuing a streetcar system in Columbus.
Unlike recently built systems in
Kenosha and
Little Rock
( The "Little Rock")
, government_type = Council-manager
, leader_title = Mayor
, leader_name = Frank Scott Jr.
, leader_party = D
, leader_title2 = Council
, leader_name2 ...
, the Columbus system would not use vintage cars or equipment. Media reports often used the term "trolley" to describe the new system, to which Mayor Coleman publicly stated his dislike.
He cited the fact that the system would use modern cars similar to the
Portland Streetcar
The Portland Streetcar is a streetcar system in Portland, Oregon, that opened in 2001 and serves areas surrounding downtown Portland. The NS Line runs from Northwest Portland to the South Waterfront via Downtown and the Pearl District. The L ...
, and would not be intended as a tourist attraction.
The proposal gained support from organizations such as the Columbus chapter of the
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...
, Experience Columbus, the Ohio Rail Development Commission,
COTA, the Building Owners and Managers Association of Columbus, and the
Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission
The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) is the metropolitan planning organization for Central Ohio, including the state capitol, Columbus.
MORPC covers Franklin, Fairfield, Perry, Hocking, Logan, Union, Delaware, Morrow, and Kno ...
.
In a survey of 1,000 downtown residents, employees, and students, 73% said they would ride the streetcar if it were built.
Ridership was projected to be between 5,000 and 7,200 riders per day depending on the final route chosen.
Funding
The initial system was projected to cost approximately
US$103 million.
Coleman proposed a funding plan which would have relied on fees rather than income or property taxes. The majority of the funding would have come from sources within a "benefit zone" which is the area within six blocks of the route. A 4 percent surcharge would be added to concert, sport, and theater tickets with a face value above $10. Parking meter rates would be raised by 75ยข per hour, and all money from meters in the area would go to funding the streetcar. Off-street parking in lots and garages would also be subject to the 4 percent fee. The Ohio State University pledged to provide $12.5 million over 25 years. Various small federal grants were expected to support the streetcar.
The funding system was designed such that Columbus residents who live in suburban areas far away from the line would not have any of their tax dollars diverted to fund the system.
References
{{Transportation in Columbus, Ohio
Transportation in Columbus, Ohio
Light rail in Ohio
Proposed railway lines in Ohio
Streetcars in Ohio