COTA Line Review: 51 Reynoldsburg

this route was surprisingly good

what is this

I know what you're thinking. Another rush-hour route? But fear not — (why were you afraid in the first place) — the 51 has something that other rush-hour routes do not: frequency.

okay, where does it go

We started our trip in Reynoldsburg, at their Park & Ride. The location of this Park & Ride is rather subpar, and it would be nice if the bus actually went to the central area of Reynoldsburg.

I would argue that this Park & Ride is one of the nicest in the system. It has a medium-sized dedicated wooded parking lot, and a dedicated bus loop just for COTA buses on either the 1 or the 51 (both routes serve the stop).

We left the P&R and went west along Eastgreen, south onto Brice, then west onto I-70. This ride into Downtown was rather quick.

We got off of I-70 and north onto High, then east onto Main, passing by the COTA Transit Terminal. We turned north onto 4th, then west onto Spring, terminating at the Spring Street Terminal.

so what

This route is a very solid express rush-hour route. It has an insane frequency of about 6 times a day (2 of those being reverse commutes) which will definitely bring up the score. My only gripe with it is that it doesn’t go to the center of Reynoldsburg.

final rating

I will give the 51 a 7/10. The only thing that’s keeping it out of 8 or 9 territory is that it’s a 45 minute walk to the center of Reynoldsburg. Otherwise, it’s a very solid route.