Planning Begins for KC Streetcar Extension

With last week’s voter authorization giving them them the green light, area transit officials issued formal notice today that planning is starting for an extenstion of the Downtown streetcar, south to the Country Club Plaza and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Last week’s vote authorized creation of a Transportation Development District to finance the extension, a project estimated at $227 million. In a joint statement issued this afternoon, the KC Streetcar Authority said it would begin planning efforts in conjunction with the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, the city and a team led by HDR Engineering. They will provide the planning and engineering services with support from Burns & McDonnell, HNTB, Trekk Design Group, Hg Consult, Parson + Associates, VSM Engineering and Architectural & Historical Research in a nine-month planning effort projected to cost $1 million.

“This effort is a critical step towards advancing the region’s transit vision and completing the due diligence that will be required to make this vision a reality,” said Tom Gerend, executive director, KC Streetcar Authority. 

The KC Streetcar Southern Extension planning will focus on data collection, including existing utilities and current conditions; refining alignment details for curbs and other infrastructure; station locations and terminus configuration; coordinating regional transit service integration and improvement; updated cost estimates; and initiation of federal funding process.