CoGo and Car2Go look to expand areas

CoGo Bike Share already is thinking about expanding.

Less than one year since the program started in Columbus, the organization is asking people where they want the next set of docking stations to be placed.

An interactive map on CoGo’s website (suggest.cogo bikeshare.com) shows existing stations and those that have been proposed. The map lets users comment on both, so they can throw their support behind suggested stations and make their own proposals.

Suggestions include several stations in the Ohio State University campus area, Upper Arlington and Clintonville, along with docks near Franklin Park and Capital University.

CoGo launched last summer with a $2.3 million investment by the city. The system has 300 bicycles spread across 30 Downtown stations. Portland-based Alta Bicycle Share handles day-today operations and maintenance. It has 860 members.

Users can buy an annual membership that gives them unlimited access to the system or a day pass. The bicycles, though, must be returned to a dock every 30 minutes.

Heather Bowden, the system’s general manager, expects bike share to double in size in the next two to three years. Grandview is heating up.

The Insider reported last month that the company was making presentations about car sharing in Grandview Heights, and now the city council is considering an ordinance that would pave the way for it.

The ordinance is on the agenda for the council’s safety committee, which meets at 6 p.m. tonight at 1016 Grandview Ave.

Car2Go has 250 Smart cars that can be parked at most Columbus meters and other public spaces. The company recently announced an expansion near Port Columbus, and it has spaces at Easton and on the OSU campus.

Grandview Heights has only one permit parking area and doesn’t have parking meters. It also has a two-hour limit for parking on Grandview Avenue. by the American Public Transportation Association found that every $1 invested in public transit provides $4 in economic returns.

The Economic Impact of Public Transportation Investment report found that reduced congestion and decreased reliance on cars for transportation can contribute billions of dollars to the economy.

The organization pointed out several examples of how public transit contributes to the local economy, including the Central Ohio Transit Authority’s new Downtown circulator, the Cbus.

The Cbus shuttles riders between the Brewery District and the Short North along High and Front streets, with stops near the Greater Columbus Convention Center and Nationwide Arena. There is no fee to ride the bus.