For one month next year, Kansas City residents and visitors will have access to more public transportation. KC2026, the group that is planning for the six World Cup games in Kansas City, has announced a dedicated transit plan for tournament.
The World Cup transit service will run from June 11 to July 13 — beginning on the first match day of the tournament and ending two days after the last match in town — with buses coming every 15-30 minutes depending on the route. KC2026 has yet to determine a fare for these routes, but said it will charge riders for the service.
Lindsey Douglas, the chief operations officer for KC2026, said the service is not just about getting people to and from the airport or Arrowhead Stadium, where all six games will be held.
KC2026 also wants the new bus stops to spread spending and tourism throughout the area.
“Partners in the region do an excellent job of providing services to people in their day-to-day lives, getting to the grocery store, getting to work, getting to school,” Douglas said. “We know with the folks that are coming to participate in the tournament, whether that's a visitor or resident, we needed to meet those needs without disrupting that day-to-day activity.”
Where Kansas City's World Cup buses will go
The transportation plan, called “Connect KC 26,” will take riders to 15 different locations where no direct service currently exists. KC2026 is calling these “regional direct” routes, and will stretch them between places like Lawrence, downtown Kansas City, Independence and Overland Park. They'll also connect riders to the FIFA Fan Festival at the National World War I Memorial and Museum.
The regional direct routes are located at:
- North Kansas City
- Worlds of Fun
- Liberty
- Boardwalk Square (Kansas City)
- Independence Square
- Independence Center
- Lee’s Summit
- 3-Trails Transit Center (south Kansas City)
- Kansas City Zoo & Aquarium
- Overland Park Convention Center
- Oak Park Mall (Overland Park)
- Mission
- Lenexa City Center
- The Legends (Kansas City, Kansas)
- Lawrence, Kansas
Buses are scheduled every 20 minutes on each route, with the exception of Lawrence, where buses will come at 30 minute intervals.
Douglas said the planning committee studied the locations of hotels, short-term rentals and amenities before planning the new stop locations.
“No direct service currently exists for any of these locations,” Douglas said. “Many of them do connect to existing services, but these (new routes) are really filling a gap, particularly on direct service from downtown out to these locations.”
In addition to the regional direct service, KC2026 will also run direct airport service between KCI and downtown. Those buses will come every 15 minutes.
Kansas City will host six matches during the World Cup. On those six days, KC2026 will operate what it calls “stadium direct” service between four locations, the FIFA Fan Festival, and the stadium. This service will only be for game ticket holders.
The five locations will operate as park-and-ride stops where riders will pay to park before boarding the buses. These direct routes are located at:
- Highway 40
- Independence Center
- Oak Park Mall
- North Kansas City
The latter three stops are also part of the regional direct service. At the stadium, many parking spots will have already been sold through FIFA hospitality packages. KC2026 said only about 4,000 spots will be available for general ticket holders, making public transit even more important.
KC2026 has contracted 215 buses for the month-long event, and plans to contract more. The buses used for the group’s transit will be motorcoaches that seat around 53 people. All buses will be in operation on match days, but fewer will run the regional direct service on non-match days.
Larger plans for expanding transit
In addition to the new routes provided by KC2026, other transit agencies in the region are increasing their service throughout the event. Johnson County will run free buses between March and November next year, connecting the Overland Park Convention Center and Lenexa City Center to the airport. The two cities are considering making the service a more permanent offering depending on its success. Johnson County Transit also plans to reinforce bus lines to hotels like the Sheraton in Overland Park.
Amtrak plans to add an extra daily service on the Missouri River Runner line between Kansas City and St. Louis between April and June next year to prepare for increased travel ahead of the World Cup.
The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority plans to run extra buses along the Kansas City Streetcar line to manage the flood of people attending the FIFA Fan Festival. It will operate 40 days of expanded service during the games.
The transit agency did not receive money from the federal government to run the program, however. It plans to use more than $2 million from a federal grant it received in 2018, which was originally intended to buy new buses, to operate the expanded service.
Representatives for KC2026 said they are also working with the KC Streetcar Authority to increase frequency on the recently-expanded streetcar line for the fan fest.
Riders who use KC2026’s transit service next year will likely be able to plan their trips via an app. The planning committee will input bus information into FIFA’s host city app, and hopes to include its service on existing transit apps so riders can coordinate their trips.
Pam Kramer, the chief executive officer of KC2026, said the group hopes the increased service during the World Cup next year will increase the appetite for public transit during regular times. She said the group has already received positive feedback about future transit planning.
“If we can, and I believe we can, deliver transportation that is reliable, safe, seamless, pleasant, people will say, ‘You know what? I would love to have a direct ride to the airport. I would love to have a direct ride downtown. I am more inclined to support, listen and talk about public transit moving forward,’” Kramer said.
