Earlier this month, we ran a story about the accessibility to jobs in the Kansas City metro by public transportation. It takes Kara McGowan, of Kansas City, Mo., more than 90 minutes to get to her job in Westport once she drops off her children at day care.
To get a broader picture of public transit commute times, we picked a few large employment sites and used the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority trip-planning tool to see how long it would take to get to work:
Village West in Kansas City, Kan.
Five thousand people work in Village West, the retail, office and recreation development that includes Nebraska Furniture Mart, Sporting Park, The Kansas Speedway, and the Legends Outlets in Kansas City, Kan. In addition, Cerner is expecting to add another 4,000 by the time it has added all its new employees to its Continuous Campus.
Leaving 39th Street and Troost Avenue at 7:08 a.m., it would take one hour and 25 minutes to get to Nebraska Furniture Mart. The route begins on the Troost MAX toward 11th and Wyandotte. After 11 stops, there is a short walk to the 10th Street and Main Metro center to catch a bus to State Avenue Connex/Village West. After 49 stops, there is about a five minute walk to the Nebraska Furniture Mart.
Sprint Corporation in Overland Park, Kan.
The Sprint Corporation, located at 6400 Sprint Parkway employees 7,600. The sprawling campus office park occupies several blocks between Nall Road and Metcalf Avenue in Overland Park.
Leaving from 39th Street and Troost Avenue at 6:59 a.m., it takes one hour and 20 minutes to get to work on two buses that together make 30 stops.
Technology Campus in Lee's Summit, Mo.
Lee's Summit Technology Campus at 777 NW Blue Parkway in Lees Summit, Mo., houses, among other things, CVS Caremark, Summit Technology Academy and the Department of Homeland Security.
Leaving at 6:08 a.m., which is the closest time to 7 a.m. a rider can depart and still arrive at work by 9 a.m., it takes one hour and three minutes on two different buses with two walks, approximately five and 15 minutes in duration, to get to the Technology Campus.
This look at Kansas City's east side is part of KCUR's months-long examination of how geographic borders affect our daily lives in Kansas City. KCUR will go Beyond Our Borders and spark a community conversation through social outreach and innovative journalism.
We will share the history of these lines, how the borders affect the current Kansas City experience and what's being done to bridge or dissolve them. Be a source for Beyond Our Borders: Share your perspective and experiences east of Troost with KCUR.
