Plans have been approved for Kansas City to triple the distance of its streetcar, which has operated fare-free since it began service in 2016. Kansas City's bus system has also offered free rides since 2020, a policy that is set to sunset this year but officials are exploring making it permanent.
While this is a local story, and the KC Streetcar is a comparatively small operation, it's nice to report some encouraging news about growth in ridership and the increasing vibrance of a downtown area.
Construction on a northbound streetcar extension, from River Market to the Berkeley Riverfront, will begin next year. But there's still plenty of work left to do on the route to UMKC, with an expected open date in late 2025.
It became the biggest city in the U.S. to eliminate fares system-wide in 2020. But Kansas City’s experience has some unique local factors that don’t necessarily point the way for other cities to follow suit.