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Council approves final CARES transit appropriation to upgrade buses and electronic signage
Summary
City council approved an appropriation from the transit CARES fund to finish reimbursable purchases for buses, CAD/AVL upgrades and an electronic head-sign project; staff said the grant is 100% reimbursable and that the new signs will show route/stops, not general advertising.
The Columbus City Council approved on second reading an appropriation from the transit CARES fund to complete previously authorized transit purchases and to fund an upgrade project for bus electronic head signs.
A transit department representative (Speaker 8) told the council the city received a CARES Act grant during the COVID-19 pandemic that is fully reimbursable. City transit used the funds to acquire five cutaway paratransit vans, an additional Gillig bus (vehicle No. 36), and to upgrade the buses' communications systems (CAD/AVL). The appropriation approved at second reading will allow the department to finish work on a project to upgrade the buses' electronic destination and side-panel signs, which staff said will display route information and approaching-stop details rather than free-form advertising.
"This is a 100 reimbursement grant," the transit representative said, describing the CARES grant funding and the reimbursement process. The representative clarified that the head signs are intended to be informative for riders (for example, saying "approaching Target" or indicating destination) and that transit will limit advertising; interior posters may carry public-service messaging or limited paid advertising but the exterior head signs will be route-focused.
Council members asked technical questions about what will appear on the new signs and whether advertising would be permitted. Staff said signs are flexible but will primarily show route names and destinations. One council member asked about the historical total of CARES funding, citing estimates of $2.5 million and $1.6 million; staff said they would follow up with exact figures.
A motion to pass the appropriation on second reading was made and a roll-call vote was recorded: multiple council members replied "Aye" during the roll call and the presiding official recorded the second reading as passed. The transcript records individual "Aye" responses during roll call but does not spell out a numeric tally for this appropriation in the body text beyond members' affirmative votes.
Staff said the purchases funded by the CARES grant are reimbursable and the project will proceed under the federal grant reimbursement process; staff offered to provide the precise historical grant totals after the meeting.
