KC Light Rail

According to breaking news from The Star, the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce finalized their support for light rail today and will give $25,000 to the campaign. The Chamber opposed the last city-backed light rail plan in 2001.

The Brookings Institution released a report today that details how the two major presidential candidates measure up when it comes to transportation. Tonight's debate will be mostly about foreign policy and (now) the economy, but we doubt the remaining two debates will cover this topic at all (even though cities, states, and the Feds are facing a transportation funding crisis).

As a precursor to the proposed State Avenue BRT project, KCATA and the Unified Government of Wyandotte County announced the debut of Sunday service in the county and a single-seat ride from downtown KCMO to Village West. The trip is about 14 miles end-to-end and previously required a transfer at the soon-to-be-remade Indian Springs Shopping Center.

The change will go a long way towards getting more people to where the jobs are. Retailers at the four-year-old development have had a rough time attracting low-wage earners to drive to such a far-flung location.

Here's quick look at who has donated at least $5,000 or more — the amount that requires immediate disclosure — to the light rail campaign:

- HNTB, engineering ($25,000)
- Hallmark Global Services ($15,000)
- Downtown Council ($10,000)
- Shook, Hardy, & Bacon, law firm ($10,000)
- Taliaferro & Browne, consulting engineers ($10,000)
- Lathrop & Gage, law firm ($8,000)

No funded opposition has appeared as of yet. On a side note, we were quite surprised to hear KCATA General Manager Mark Huffer refer to Oak Street as one of the downtown routes being considered during light rail Q&A on today's Up To Date (an obvious nod to Cordish, since Oak has never been vetted in any public meetings); Cordish is opposed to using Grand Avenue for light rail, which is the public right of way adjacent to their Power & Light District.

The Kansas City Business Journal has the scoop.

Local:

• Light-Rail Supporters Kick Off Campaign (KMBC)
• Light Rail Campaign Launches (KSHB)
• Looking into light-rail myths: What are the facts? (Kansas City Star)
• Light rail costs (Prime Buzz)

National:

• Public transit and oil dependence (Gristmill)
• Speaker touts perks of mass-transit line (Indianapolis Star)
• Metro let problems multiply, audit says (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
• Unsnarling Transportation Funding (The Bulletin)
• Transit author tracks new ideas (Fort Worth Business Press)
• The railroad not taken (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)
• New Light Rail Line Coming To Baltimore (WJZ)