December 6th 2015, It was a chilly autumn evening in the city of Columbus twenty one thousand people filled Mapfre stadium. The energy was electric the city was having flashbacks to the 08 MLS cup and now here they were in their own backyard fighting for a chance at a second taste. But the city of Columbus is all to familiar with that bitter taste of defeat. Aside from the university north of the heart of the city, Columbus has been cast in the shadows of other Midwest cities time and again. When people think Ohio they think of Cleveland, maybe Cincinnati not often Columbus. And as the stoppage whistle blew and the match concluded it would be Portland who carried the cup not the home city. Columbus again tasted defeat.
But something else was stirring in the nation that faithful December in 2015. And like most things on this beautiful planet, out of death out of defeat often comes life. The United States Department of Transportation decided to launch a challenge. In the words of the department itself: "asking mid-sized cities across America to develop ideas for an integrated, first-of-its-kind smart transportation system that would use data, applications, and technology to help people and goods move more quickly, cheaply, and efficiently." Hope ignited within this mid-sized mid-Ohio, Midwest city.
78 cities sent in their visions during the first round of this brutal competition of titans. 78 powerful cities with their cultural influences and their aspirations for a chance to be the first city in a 'space race' like competition to hold the title of 21st century smart city with state of the art transportation. The envy of America, nay the world.
The competition was fierce but not long after the second round was announced. The top seven cities and their proposals had been selected. Austin, Denver, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Portland, San Francisco and last and possibly least...Columbus. The mid of mids had by some stroke of fate made it to the second round.
The country rose to a fever pitch as the nation's eyes turned towards these seven cities. The oven had turned up the heat. There were too many cooks in the kitchen and each of them knew it. Proposals and submissions were filed using the hottest hot button futuristic words like: autonomous, vehicle-to-vehicle Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC), electric, fleets, smartphone, sustainable, infrastructure, and apps, These cities pulled no punches.
Three months went by and when the dust settled one city remained. Against all odds and able to stand while the others stumbled and collapsed under the extreme pressure of the competition and the nation's eye Columbus got a taste of that victory.
Once the world's eyes turned towards this underdog city, everything was going to change. The city had just been handed a free check for $40 million dollars towards transportation. Not long after that Vulcan Inc. emerged from the shadows of its defeated city of Seattle, set aside it's feelings of loss and decided to give an additional $10 million to Columbus. That's when the dominoes began to fall. $170 million from AEP $64 million from the University $35 million from the state $9 million from IGS Energy $7.5 million from Singularity University $2 million from Nationwide. The next thing this little city knew it was staring down the opportunity of half a billion dollars in funding to completely change its transportation, modernizing as THE city of tomorrow.
A quick trip south on I-71 to the Queen city and you'll find an electric streetcar that cost the city $148 million to build. Imagine, would Columbus use some of it's money to build a completely debt free electric streetcar? Leaving still $352 million? Bob Weiler, a Central Ohio developer and former board member of the Central Ohio Transit Authority told WOSU that he would like to see the COTA free for all riders. According to the COTA budget in 2017 total operating revenues from passenger fares was $1,968,800. Would Columbus spend 2 million dollars to make COTA fares free for a year? Still leaving $350 million on the table. A look at one of the seven finalists, Denver, they built The Southeast Corridor Light Rail Line 19 miles of track for $879 million. 19 miles could go from German village to Lewis Center. And that's the price of those materials being lugged up and installed in the mountainous and expensive city of Denver. Imagine how much cheaper the cost would be installing in Columbus. Putting down $350 million leaving only $529 million left to pay off through light rail fares. Would Columbus completely change its transportation dynamic?
Columbus is on pace to have three million residents by the year 2050. Could these public transportation options prepare the city and potentially attract more than the estimated number growing this mid-sized city to a size comparable to Chicago, its Midwestern big brother?
The future seemed limitless for this young up and coming city. Would people flock here? Would Amazon eat its hat for passing up its second head quarters in Columbus?
In June of 2018 The Smart Columbus visitor center and headquarters opened in downtown Columbus across from the Scioto Mile park. It was a (by mid west standards) chic design black with white text and some LED lights, the kind Ohioans find stylish on their porch railings. Pressed underneath a bland white cement parking garage figuratively displaying both the pressure and the task of solving the transportation whoas of not just this city but all of America. The public seemed confused, the real estate had to be ridiculously and unnecessarily expensive but with $500 million in the pocket who would notice? The tech world was still this Midwest city's oyster.
But then something happened. On April 22nd 2019, WOSU was reporting on the exciting new things Smart Columbus could do with it's 500 million in funding when the reporter mentioned, "...Smart Columbus' grant runs out in March 2020," Wait, 2020? But the city had only just gotten this money three years prior. The city looked seemingly unchanged. No light rail, no street car, no driverless buses solving congestion around town, not even free bus fare for the citizens of the city. What had happened? Where had the money gone?
One six person self driving shuttle
600 electric vehicle charging stations
505,978 AEP smart meters installed
158 public sector electric vehicles
And the money will be gone in March 2020. Dumb.
But something else was stirring in the nation that faithful December in 2015. And like most things on this beautiful planet, out of death out of defeat often comes life. The United States Department of Transportation decided to launch a challenge. In the words of the department itself: "asking mid-sized cities across America to develop ideas for an integrated, first-of-its-kind smart transportation system that would use data, applications, and technology to help people and goods move more quickly, cheaply, and efficiently." Hope ignited within this mid-sized mid-Ohio, Midwest city.
78 cities sent in their visions during the first round of this brutal competition of titans. 78 powerful cities with their cultural influences and their aspirations for a chance to be the first city in a 'space race' like competition to hold the title of 21st century smart city with state of the art transportation. The envy of America, nay the world.
The competition was fierce but not long after the second round was announced. The top seven cities and their proposals had been selected. Austin, Denver, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Portland, San Francisco and last and possibly least...Columbus. The mid of mids had by some stroke of fate made it to the second round.
The country rose to a fever pitch as the nation's eyes turned towards these seven cities. The oven had turned up the heat. There were too many cooks in the kitchen and each of them knew it. Proposals and submissions were filed using the hottest hot button futuristic words like: autonomous, vehicle-to-vehicle Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC), electric, fleets, smartphone, sustainable, infrastructure, and apps, These cities pulled no punches.
Three months went by and when the dust settled one city remained. Against all odds and able to stand while the others stumbled and collapsed under the extreme pressure of the competition and the nation's eye Columbus got a taste of that victory.
Once the world's eyes turned towards this underdog city, everything was going to change. The city had just been handed a free check for $40 million dollars towards transportation. Not long after that Vulcan Inc. emerged from the shadows of its defeated city of Seattle, set aside it's feelings of loss and decided to give an additional $10 million to Columbus. That's when the dominoes began to fall. $170 million from AEP $64 million from the University $35 million from the state $9 million from IGS Energy $7.5 million from Singularity University $2 million from Nationwide. The next thing this little city knew it was staring down the opportunity of half a billion dollars in funding to completely change its transportation, modernizing as THE city of tomorrow.
A quick trip south on I-71 to the Queen city and you'll find an electric streetcar that cost the city $148 million to build. Imagine, would Columbus use some of it's money to build a completely debt free electric streetcar? Leaving still $352 million? Bob Weiler, a Central Ohio developer and former board member of the Central Ohio Transit Authority told WOSU that he would like to see the COTA free for all riders. According to the COTA budget in 2017 total operating revenues from passenger fares was $1,968,800. Would Columbus spend 2 million dollars to make COTA fares free for a year? Still leaving $350 million on the table. A look at one of the seven finalists, Denver, they built The Southeast Corridor Light Rail Line 19 miles of track for $879 million. 19 miles could go from German village to Lewis Center. And that's the price of those materials being lugged up and installed in the mountainous and expensive city of Denver. Imagine how much cheaper the cost would be installing in Columbus. Putting down $350 million leaving only $529 million left to pay off through light rail fares. Would Columbus completely change its transportation dynamic?
Columbus is on pace to have three million residents by the year 2050. Could these public transportation options prepare the city and potentially attract more than the estimated number growing this mid-sized city to a size comparable to Chicago, its Midwestern big brother?
In June of 2018 The Smart Columbus visitor center and headquarters opened in downtown Columbus across from the Scioto Mile park. It was a (by mid west standards) chic design black with white text and some LED lights, the kind Ohioans find stylish on their porch railings. Pressed underneath a bland white cement parking garage figuratively displaying both the pressure and the task of solving the transportation whoas of not just this city but all of America. The public seemed confused, the real estate had to be ridiculously and unnecessarily expensive but with $500 million in the pocket who would notice? The tech world was still this Midwest city's oyster.
But then something happened. On April 22nd 2019, WOSU was reporting on the exciting new things Smart Columbus could do with it's 500 million in funding when the reporter mentioned, "...Smart Columbus' grant runs out in March 2020," Wait, 2020? But the city had only just gotten this money three years prior. The city looked seemingly unchanged. No light rail, no street car, no driverless buses solving congestion around town, not even free bus fare for the citizens of the city. What had happened? Where had the money gone?
One six person self driving shuttle
600 electric vehicle charging stations
505,978 AEP smart meters installed
158 public sector electric vehicles
And the money will be gone in March 2020. Dumb.