COLUMBUS – It may not be long before you see electric COTA buses on the streets of Columbus.
The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded a $2.6 million grant to the Central Ohio Transit Authority to buy up to 11 zero-emission electric buses and two charging stations, according to an announcement Wednesday from the office of Democratic U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown.
“This investment will help COTA improve service for their riders and help Ohio continue its leadership in developing and deploying the next generation of zero-emission buses,” Brown said.
COTA hopes to operate a low- or no-emission fleet by 2025, president and CEO Joanna Pinkerton said.
“This grant expedites the transition of mass transit to electrification right here in the heart of the nation’s largest mobility ecosystem,” Pinkerton said.
The funds are part of the Federal Transit Administration’s Low or No Emission Program, known as “No-Lo.”
Brown is the ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, which oversees FTA.