COTA Ready to Transport Thousands of Customers During Annual Red, White and Boom Celebration July 3
Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) will operate extra buses and late-night service to coincide with Red White & BOOM! on July 3, helping revelers get to downtown Columbus and home safely and efficiently while enjoying the celebration. COTA will also have full access to High Street during the festivities, while general traffic will not, which means COTA can get those attending Red, White & Boom! closer to the Scioto Mile than by driving and parking. Also riding COTA to Boom! means avoiding traffic headaches and saving families a lot of money on special event parking costs.
For more information about getting to and from Red, White & Boom with COTA, please visit: https://www.cota.com/boom or call the COTA Customer Care call center at 614-228-1776. Customer Care will be open for extended hours, from 6 a.m. to midnight on July 3.
Red, White & Boom! is the largest single-day event in Columbus, drawing 400,000 visitors to the area to celebrate the country’s Independence and honor our military and veterans. The day features a parade, a street festival, live musical entertainment, and concludes with a spectacular fireworks display, the biggest in the Midwest.
All COTA buses will operate on a normal schedule on July 3 during the day. During the evening, COTA will have additional buses staged downtown and outside of downtown to prevent overcrowding as customers travel to and from Red, White and Boom! Following the festivities, COTA’s downtown buses will run every 10-30 minutes, with evening lineups at 10 p.m., 11 p.m., and 12 a.m. (midnight). This means customers are guaranteed their bus at the top of each hour following the fireworks.
To accommodate the post-event enhanced bus service, COTA will not offer dedicated express service previously provided from the Crosswoods, Grove City, Reynoldsburg, and Westerville Park & Rides. However, these locations will be served by regular bus service throughout the evening.
COTA is very affordable for families planning to attend the festivities. Fares are only $2 per adult per trip ($4 round trip), $1 per child under 12 per trip ($2 round trip), and children under the age of 5 can ride with an adult at no charge. Customers can pay using COTA’s digital fare payment system, through the Transit app, or a COTA Smart Card. To speed their COTA trips, passengers are encouraged to purchase fares before beginning travel. Customers may also pay cash on board.
REROUTES DURING RED, WHITE & BOOM!
Customers should expect multiple reroutes and delays, as many downtown streets will be closed. During Red, White & Boom, transit stops could be impacted by these closures, especially along High, Broad, and Front Streets near the fireworks display. However, operators will be able to get customers within a few blocks of the celebration on downtown lines.
Wednesday, July 2
- Lines 71, 72, 73, 74, and Zoo Bus will be rerouted downtown beginning at 6 a.m. and continuing through the end of the celebration.
- Lines 4, 7, and 11 will be rerouted beginning at 12 p.m. (noon) and continuing through the end of the celebration
Thursday, July 3
- Lines 3, 6, and 9 will be rerouted at 1:30 p.m. to begin staging for the parade.
- Lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 51, 52, 61, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 102, CMAX and Zoo Bus will be rerouted from 5 p.m. to the end of service day (midnight).
Information on reroutes will be posted on the homepage of COTA.com before the event and will be shared on social media all day on July 3. Reroutes are subject to change without notice due to traffic conditions and decisions made by event and transportation officials.
