New Albany and Cornerstone in the Driver’s Seat at COTA

In the Driver's Seat at COTA

New Albany and Cornerstone students visited a main COTA office on Wednesday to learn about what the service offers, its history, and the job opportunities available. The day began with ice breakers and an informational meeting where students learned how long COTA has been in operation, what different routes and transportation options they offer and exciting news about the upcoming LinkUs project which will streamline bus transportation throughout Columbus.

With this background, New Albany and Cornerstone students learned about different job opportunities: transportation operators (who are union!), legal council jobs, human resources, engineering, mechanics and more. Students then put on their safety vests and received a tour of the massive bus hangar - where buses come for either major repair or maintenance every 10,000 miles. A single bus costs $1.3 million! An engineer for COTA explained his role and how he found his way to the job - and how he gets fulfillment from working on such an important public service.

At the end of the day, COTA provided Donato’s and students answered trivia questions for swag bags. Everyone walked out with COTA “Mentor” hats at the end as a reminder to be a mentor for friends and fellow students. We would like to give a huge thank you to COTA for having our students to this fun and informative event, and for the service they provide to 10 million riders annually!

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