News

(June 16, 2020) Columbia, SC – The Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET) reopened its downtown transit hub today with capital upgrades and a mandatory mask requirement. The hub, now known as COMET Central, has been closed since late March when the governor’s state of emergency and COVID-19 safety ...

(June 11, 2020) Columbia, SC – The COMET announced today that beginning Monday, June 15, it will be requiring masks or face coverings for all persons riding any of The COMET buses or entering any COMET facility. According to John Andoh, Executive Director/CEO of The COMET, the organization will offer ...

(June 1, 2020) Columbia, SC – The COMET announced today that The COMET Board has voted to award the Fixed Route and Paratransit Program Contract to RATP Dev effective July 1, 2020. The present five-year contract, currently held by Transdev Services, Inc of Lombard, Illinois, will expire on June 30, ...

(UPDATED 05/18/20 at 6:14 p.m.) (May 18, 2020) Columbia, SC – The Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET) announced schedule changes from an enhanced Sunday level of service to a Saturday level of service with added routes and increased frequency to accommodate peak demand times. There will also be ...

(May 11, 2020) Columbia, SC – For two consecutive years, The Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET) has received commendation on its financial audits. The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) awarded a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to Central Midlands ...

(May 11, 2020) Columbia, SC – For two consecutive years, The Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET) has received commendation on its financial audits. The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) awarded a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to Central Midlands ...

TransSee now support the COMET with real time arrivals. The real time transit prediction webapp TransSee now supports The COMET serving Columbia, South Carolina. It's features includes: TransSee does not need to be installed and can be run from any browser, mobile or desktop. Choose stops from a map or ...

(May 8, 2020) Columbia, SC – It has not been business as usual at Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET). Pamela Bynoe-Reed reflected to last fall when she joined as Manager of Marketing and Public Information. No one could have predicted the current state of business due to the ...

(May 7, 2020) Columbia, SC – The Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET) announced a new pilot partnership with Rare Variety Farms. The partnership was developed to help overcome food deserts in underserved areas. Beginning __________, the pilot will serve residents of The Colony Apartments and Northepoint Apartments with ...

(April 29, 2020) Columbia, SC – The Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET) is partnering with Senior Resources to get much needed nutrition to the elderly in Richland County during the current pandemic. The COMET will deliver meals to approximately 100 seniors per week. The first deliveries were made ...

(April 15, 2020) Columbia, SC – The Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority (The COMET) announced further schedule changes from a Saturday level of service to a Sunday level of service with added on-demand service for areas not served on the Sunday routes. The changes will go into effect on Monday, ...

(April 9, 2020) Columbia, SC – The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has allocated $15.3 million to the Columbia metropolitan region to help the area’s public transportation system, The COMET, respond to COVID-19. The FTA allocated a total of $25 billion to public transportation systems across the country. The funding was ...