A new pedestrian bridge downtown will let Kansas Citians safely walk or bike to the Berkley Riverfront, including Kansas City Current matches at CPKC Stadium.
On May 8, Kansas City officials celebrated the official opening of the Grand Boulevard Bike and Pedestrian Bridge, which connects the River Market to the riverfront. The protected pathway runs parallel to the existing Grand Boulevard bridge, which will soon support the Kansas City Streetcar’s riverfront extension. The $15 million infrastructure project is intended to safely connect pedestrians and cyclists to growing development along the river.
Previously, people had to use the older Grand Boulevard bridge, which lacked sidewalks, or the longer Town of Kansas Bridge.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said the bridge helps make the city more accessible for everyone.
“It wasn’t enough that we were building more housing opportunity, building greater park spaces and, obviously, building a world-class stadium for the Kansas City Current on the riverfront,” he said. “We also wanted to make sure that it was connected: connected to the River Market, connected to downtown.”
Construction on the bridge began last year. Its opening comes just before the Kansas City Streetcar Riverfront Extension is set to open to the public on May 18.
City officials, KC Current leadership and development groups like Port KC have been developing the riverfront area in recent years. In addition to the stadium, the riverfront is now home to a restaurant and a beer garden. New apartment buildings are also popping up along the riverfront, in the hopes of turning the once-dormant area into a bustling neighborhood.
“This is going to improve the connectivity,” said 4th District-at-Large Council member Crispin Rea. “I’m excited to come and bring my 3-year-old down here and let them run up and down the pedestrian bridge and get tired out.”
Council member Eric Bunch, from the 4th District, said the new pedestrian bridge is a long time coming.
“This is a bridge that we have known we’ve needed since the one right next to it was built,” Bunch said.
The flow of Current fans along the longer Town of Kansas bridge to walk to CPKC Stadium on match days signaled the need for a better route, Bunch said.
“We saw thousands of people literally walking over a mile out of their way to take the Town of Kansas Bridge,” Bunch said. “This is gonna cut that down considerably.”
After the ribbon cutting, city officials, KC Current fans, cyclists and pedestrians walked the length of the bridge. Jeff Wells, who lives in the River Market and worked on the new bridge, was taking his dog, Lily, on a walk.
“It just makes the commute from City Market down to the Current stadium so much easier for everybody that lives in the neighborhood,” he said.
He plans to use the bridge often, much as he did Friday morning: “Out walking the dog and just enjoying the days.”
