Upper Arlington riders will get a direct bus connection to Ohio State University and downtown Columbus when the Central Ohio Transit Authority launches Line 30 on Sept. 7.

The new route will run every 30 minutes, seven days a week, linking downtown Columbus, OSU, Upper Arlington, Dublin and Hilliard. It is part of LinkUs, the transit improvement program funded by a Franklin County sales tax levy.

The Sept. 7 changes also reshape existing routes near Upper Arlington. Line 32 will be shortened to run only between Kingsdale Shopping Center and Easton Transit Center. Service west of Kingsdale will shift to Line 30.

Line 1 splits into two branches the same day. Line 1 Kenny will run between downtown and Ohio State Outpatient Care Dublin. Line 1 Livingston will run between downtown and the Reynoldsburg Park and Ride. Riders traveling between the two branches will need to transfer downtown.

When COTA first announced Line 30 in June 2025, spokesperson Jeff Pullin told WOSU the route would help riders "who might have had to take two or three different lines to get to campus."

The launch comes as COTA works to improve reliability. Cancelled trips fell from an average of 160 per day in July to 107 per day in August, according to data tracked by the automated account COTA Insights, as reported by Columbus Underground. New compressed natural gas buses are arriving to bolster the fleet, with all 38 on order expected to be deployed by October.

Pullin, COTA's director of public relations, said the agency is also improving fleet maintenance and sending recalled battery-electric buses back to the manufacturer for repair.

"To our customers, one missed trip is too many, and we will not be satisfied until we are consistent in providing all daily trips," Pullin said.

COTA said on Aug. 10 that fixing service was the agency's top priority. Riders can track buses in real time through the Transit app or by texting the stop number on any COTA bus sign.