News

Actions

Changes coming for 10th and Main Street KCATA transit center

Main hub moving to 12th and Charlotte Streets
Posted at 5:17 PM, Oct 17, 2017
and last updated 2017-10-17 18:17:16-04

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Downtown Kansas City has transformed over the years and changing with it are travel demands. New developments and an increase in people moving to the area now has public transportation shifting gears.

The transit hub at 10th and Main Streets is the busiest and most congested, serving as a pick-up and drop-off location for 15 different bus routes.

"It's just a very busy spot for people riding busses and taking public transit," Downtown Neighborhood Association President Jared Campbell said. 

It’s just always the way it's been, but now the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) wants to move the bus stop to a larger location.

"It's a very tight turn for their busses to make it inside the transit center to drop off and pick up passengers," Campbell said. 

Cindy Baker with KCATA called the main hub the ‘choke point’ of downtown. She said the new location would be in the East Village area, at 12th and Charlotte Streets.

"As that progresses, they'll be able to slowly move some of the bus routes from 10th and Main Street and eventually eliminate this as a transit hub altogether," Campbell said.

KCATA said it is still in the process of selling the property at the intersection of 10th and Main. Once sold, it would open up space in the heart of downtown for new developments. 

"Talk right now is to make this an open space," Campbell said. 

While some people would like to see a park, others in the downtown area would like to see something else.

"The number one request that I get and the Neighborhood Association gets is for a city Target," Campbell said. 

Residents and visitors to downtown may have to wait two years before the 10th and Main Street hub is completely moved as plans are finalized.

"Whether it is a green space or a future building, we just want to make sure that it's friendly to residents and pedestrians downtown," Campbell said. 

The new transit center that would go up at 12th and Charlotte would also serve the current Troost MAX bus rapid transit route and the planned Prospect MAX route.