LENEXA, Kan. — The KC2026 transportation plan, dubbed ConnectKC26, will connect both residents and visitors to the region during FIFA World Cup 26.
During a Tuesday press conference, Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas, Johnson County Board of Commissioners Chairman Mike Kelly and KC2026 CEO Pam Kramer spoke about the plan and their hopes for its use.
Kramer said the plan was a “group effort” that was more than 18 months in the making.
When creating the plan, she said the three core tenets were to deliver the tournament requirements, minimize disruption to daily life in Kansas City, and create sustained, long-term economic impact across the region.
The plan offers three services that aim to simplify travel and maximize the fan experience, per KC2026.
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Region Direct
The Region Direct will provide direct service to/from 15 sites and the FIFA Fan Festival at the National World War I Museum and Memorial. Service will run from June 11 to July 13.
Lucas, Kelly and Kramer said they hope to not only provide entertainment for visitors but to encourage residents to explore areas of the region they've never experienced.
Region Direct’s 15 sites include:
- Boardwalk Square — 8600 N. Boardwalk Ave., KCMO
- Independence Center — 18801 E. 39th St. S
- Independence Square — 13910 E. Truman Rd.
- KC Zoo — 6700 Swope Pkwy., KCMO
- Lawrence — 2315 Bob Billings Pkwy.
- Lee's Summit — 217 SW Main St.
- The Legends — 10824 Parallel Pkwy. SPC 700, KCK
- Lenexa City Center — 8741 Ryckert St.
- Liberty — 1915 College St.
- Mission Transit Center — 5251 Johnson Drive
- North Kansas City — 520 E. 19th Ave.
- Oak Park Mall — 11149 W. 95th St., Overland Park
- Overland Park Convention Center — 6000 College Blvd.
- Worlds of Fun — 4545 Worlds of Fun Ave., KCMO
- 3-Trails Transit Center — 9449 Blue Ridge Blvd., KCMO
Stadium Direct
The Stadium Direct service will run only on match days. Ticketholders can board from four locations and Fan Fest on the direct route to Kansas City Stadium (GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium).
The four park-and-ride locations include:
- Highway 40 — Highway 40 and Stadium Drive, KCMO
- Independence Center — 18801 E. 39th St. S
- North Kansas City — 520 E. 19th Ave.
- Oak Park Mall — 11149 W. 95th St., Overland Park
Airport Direct
In an effort to provide a world-class first impression, KC2026 has established the Airport Direct route, which will run about every 15 minutes between Kansas City International Airport and downtown KCMO.
The service will transport riders to a “central hub for hotels and connecting transportation services.”
Airport Direct will run from June 11 to July 13, ending two days after the last match in Kansas City.
Kramer said if someone were to take public transportation today from the Lenexa City Center to Fan Fest, it would take about an hour and 40 minutes. But with the Region Direct service, the route would take about 30 minutes.
“We want locals to stay here; they will make the experience authentically Kansas City,” Kramer said. “And we want them to embrace this as a staycation, right? To use the system to get around and to enjoy all that will be happening.”
With the Region Direct service running for 33 days, Mayor Lucas said he hopes residents hop aboard to explore both Kansas and Missouri.
“We are connecting areas that I don’t think we’ve always done a good job of,” Lucas said. “And, frankly, we’re letting people see good nodes of activity all throughout the region. I think this is something that can be transformative for Kansas City, not only in saying we’re a region working together but really exposing people to different parts of the region.”
Chairman Kelly agreed. He said the plan was intentional about creating transportation opportunities beyond match days, ensuring economic benefits of the tournament go “well beyond just city center but to the entire region.”
He also said he hopes the services provide opportunities for those who rarely or never utilize public transportation to “experience it in a new way, to see that it can be convenient, to see that it can be timely, and to hopefully utilize this as a launching point for great public transit where people want to go into the future.”
Each service will be provided via motorcoaches.
More information on fares is forthcoming. Kramer said fare fees are likely to be decided after Friday’s draw and once Kansas City has a better idea of which teams will be visiting.
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