The Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) has launched its first Customer Experience Action Plan to provide a roadmap for improving the entire customer journey, from planning a trip and paying fare to boarding a vehicle and reaching a destination.

“Our customers count on COTA to get to work, attend school, make medical appointments and stay connected to their communities. They deserve service that meets their needs and respects their time,” said COTA President and CEO Monica Téllez-Fowler. “Our first Customer Experience Action Plan is our commitment to listening and turning that feedback into action. Our customers helped shape this plan, and their experiences will help guide how we improve service today and build our transit system for the future.”

The plan was developed, in part, through feedback from hundreds of customers, combined with community input, employee insights and performance data. The plan outlines improvements across fixed-route bus service, COTA Mainstream paratransit and COTA/Plus on-demand service. Its focus areas include:

• Strengthening service reliability and on-time performance. 

• Improving transit stops, transit centers and vehicle conditions. 

• Providing clearer, more timely service information. 

• Making trip planning and fare payment easier. 

• Modernizing accessibility and booking tools. 

• Expanding access to service.

The plan also supports employees through training, communication, safety and professional development initiatives that help them serve customers. The agency says the Customer Experience Action Plan will help guide efforts to identify service risks earlier, strengthen coordination across teams and use customer feedback and performance data to reduce the likelihood and impact of future disruptions. It also prioritizes clearer, more timely information when service issues occur, helping customers understand changes and make informed travel decisions.

COTA joins TransLink, the Utah Transit Authority and the Connecticut Department of Transportation as other agencies who have launched a Customer Experience Action Plan in the past few years.