KC Light Rail

12 Comments so far

1. doinkman August 7th, 2008 6:06 pm

   Progress!

2. Lazyike August 8th, 2008 8:52 am

   I hope everyone would vote NO in NO-vember. This is a badly conceived plan that takes folks from North KC to Prospect Ave. Add to that I’m sure everyone remembers how fun it was to travel Downtown during the Power & Light and Sprint Arena construction? Well expect the same thing along this route.

   For those of you who live or work along this route… Best start looking for a new job & home before the city comes knocking.

   However there IS an alternative. MONORAIL.

   Imagine this. 6 Orange barrels stacked on top of each other running down Main or Grand. This being topped
   by an I beam. Some stations can be built over the street. Others built over buildings or empty lots or parks.

   The Wuppertal Monorail in Germany opened in 1901 so this is not a “New” Idea like light rail. It is not dependent on overhead power lines like Light Rail. ZERO chance of Car vs Train wrecks. In it’s 107 year history only FOUR people have been killed in the same accident. Can light rail claim this? NO.

   http://www.monorails.org/tMspages/TPindex.html offers the various types of transit. The PRTs would be great
   for downtown where parking is expensive.

3. Dave August 8th, 2008 8:56 am

   sorry, but you’re a little late to the party. monorail was not considered in the alternatives analysis and there is no political support for it at this time. that’s not to say it’s an inherently bad idea (like the subway concept), it’s just not on anyone’s list.

   moving on…

4. Jon August 8th, 2008 11:26 am

   I will say it: Monorail is an inherently bad idea. I am from Seattle (my wife is from KC). We just went through a monorail boondoggle from 1997 to 2005. The cost doubled while the route was cut in half. We spent $100 million with nothing to show for it, except it pushed legitimate transit planning back eight years. Las Vegas actually built a monorail, but it is a financial disaster.

   We also hear a lot about PRT in Seattle. This is another scam designed to siphon of the limited funding we have for legitimate transportation planning. It is a stall tactic. There are major personal safety, passenger comfort, system capacity, reliability and regulatory issues that make PRT unsafe and unbuildable. To pursue an unfeasible course of action is irresponsible. I applaud K.C. for not going down the PRT rabbit hole.

   The city has selected a good route. Main/Grand is the best alignment, connecting all the key activity centers in the center city. It is far better than Chastain’s Broadway proposal. The cost is amazingly affordable for 14 miles of rail ($800M could only buy you, at best, 10 miles of new six-lane “free”-way). Best of luck to this proposal. My wife and I hope it passes!

5. Marge Simpson August 9th, 2008 1:14 pm

   Monorail! Monorail!

   “The Wuppertal Monorail in Germany opened in 1901 so this is not a “New” Idea like light rail.”

   Ideas should not be judged by their age, merely their effectiveness. Light rail has been proven effective everywhere, monorails have no significant success stories. Light rail averages at least 30mph, compared to 16mph for the Wuppertal Schwebebahn. And there are no stairs to climb, or ugly distopian superstructures.

6. northlander August 9th, 2008 4:07 pm

   Light Rail will have a top speed of 18mph in KC

7. northlander August 9th, 2008 4:09 pm

   Sorry, Light Rail will average 18mph in KC.
   Does anyone know what it will cost to ride?

8. Dave August 10th, 2008 8:01 am

   that’s top *average* speed and probably not all that lower than your average speed in a car through the city.

   fares will likely be whatever the standard ATA fare is when service begins (today it’s $1.25).

9. John August 17th, 2008 7:05 pm

   WOW, you guys really ARE riding a train at Disneyland aren’t you??

   Look at the fairs in other cities with EXISTING rail lines…they’re $1.75 and UP, plus $.25 - $1 for transfers! And that’s on lines that are ALREADY IN PLACE!

   Think of construction costs, and then take a guess at what you’re fares are going to be. $4 a gallon for gas won’t be much more than the fare!

10. matt August 19th, 2008 9:45 pm

    I wish I had gotten to this post earlier and I wish we hadn’t moved on from the subway concept for several reasons. A five to six mile subway with light rail vehicles between the Plaza and the River Market would have been the correct way to start a truly “rapid transit” spine in Kansas City. Making just five stops between the two termini (River Market, North Downtown, Convention/Sprint Center/Power and Light, Union Station/Crown Center, 31st and Main, 39th and Main, and the Plaza and with a top speed of 55 mph the trip from the River market to the Plaza could be around 10 minutes rather than the 30 minutes the current BRT system needs. Extensions to the spine could run at grade beyond the termini, but at least the core would remain uninterrupted. Couple this spine with a downtown streetcar, commuter rail stations at Union Station and/or the River Market, and East/West BRT routes at the spine stations and you have a really workable transit system. Unfortunately the “what’s good for me is far more important than what’s good for all” and “gotta have it now and gotta have it cheap” mentalities are pernicious and pervasive. All of that said, at least something will be on the ballot in November.

11. James September 23rd, 2008 9:27 am

    Chew On these facts in St. Louis

    PROS:

    All day pass on STL rail: $4.75

    Visit The Landing and Gateway Arch: Free

    Visit Union station: Free

    Visit a few parks: Free

    Can get to the airport: Free

    Parking at garages to ride the rail: Free

    Listining to your iPod

    reading the newspaper

    eat a snack

    chat with family and friends undistracted as opposed to:

    Driving on the streets of STL with the worst drivers on the planet

    the stress that comes with it

    Spending about $20 in gas to achieve the above

    keeping in mind their streets are in horrible condition

    PRICELESS

12. Steve November 11th, 2008 10:06 am

    I’m from New Jersey/New York and Jersey has a lightrail system that runs from Jersey City to Edgewater and it’s the best thing since sliced bread.

    I was considering moving to Kansas City but from what I can read the city is still behing in the times and struggling to attract new talent from areas like NY, NJ, PA, DC & ATL.

    Let me speak from experience, once you get used to the lightrail you will never want to drive your car again considering how gas prices are up and down.

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