Ohio State University students, staff and faculty can now use a digital pass in the Ohio State app to get on Central Ohio Transit Authority buses instead of using their BuckID, according to an Aug. 20 COTA press release.
The change will affect how thousands of COTA riders interact with the transit authority. OSU students, staff and faculty took around 730,000 trips via COTA in 2025, accounting for around 5% of COTA's total trips that year.
Eligible riders do not have to set up the new pass, which is already accessible by navigating to "For You >>COTA Ticket" in the Ohio State app. Students and staff will still be able to use their BuckIDs to board COTA buses until Jan. 6, according to the press release.
"Now boarding a COTA bus is as easy as opening
an app they use every day. That kind of frictionless access is how we make transit the obvious choice for getting to class, to work and everything this city has to offer," COTA Chief Innovation & Technology Officer Sophia Mohr said in a prepared statement.
COTA trainers will demonstrate the new digital passes at the annual Buck-i-Frenzy Aug. 24 from noon to 3:30 p.m. outside of the Recreation and Physical Activity Center on OSU's main campus.
Transportation and neighborhoods reporter Nathan Hart can be reached at NHart@dispatch.com, @NathanRHart on X and nathanhart.dispatch.com on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: COTA launches digital bus passes for Ohio State University students, staff
