KC Streetcar opens Riverfront extension: ‘City that’s on the move’
With a cheery ding, the Riverfront Streetcar extension is open after 10 years of planning and two years of construction. The opening occurred less than six months after the inauguration of the streetcar’s Main Street extension.
The addition completes a 6.5 mile transit spine from CPKC Stadium, Berkeley Riverfront Park, the River Market, Downtown, Midtown and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
On a breezy Monday morning, hundreds of government officials, designers, builders and residents gathered by the Missouri River to open the 0.7 mile extension.
From a sunny stage, Tom Gerend, Executive Director of the KC Streetcar Authority spoke to people dressed in office wear, KC Current gear and streetcar merch.
“Today is the day where we reconnect the riverfront. Today, we bring our city back to where it all started,” Gerand said.
Emanuel Cleaver, U.S. Representative, helped to get a $13 million federal grant to help fund the $62 million extension.
“Kansas City is a major city that’s on the move and I think we’re moving as much as any city in the nation,” Cleaver said.
Berkley Riverfront Park and the rest of the streetcar line was recently gerrymandered out of Cleaver’s long-time district.
Installing the 12,000 feet of overhead wire and 8,300 feet of track took two years. This is one of the many Kansas City infrastructure projects being completed in the run-up to the FIFA World Cup.
Alongside the Riverfront stop is the $5 million separately-funded CPKC Pavilion, which provides seating and cover for streetcar riders in a design that echoes the nearby Missouri River.
The nearby Grand Boulevard pedestrian bridge opened in early May. The city-managed pedestrian and bike bridge from the River Market to the Riverfront adjoins the streetcar tracks.
Residents ready to ride
The extension gives fans of the KC Current women’s soccer team an easier way to get to CPKC Stadium.
Richard Harper, known for his blue painted head and red glitter beard, said he’s going to take advantage. Better known as the Teal Man, the Current superfan lives on the Plaza.
“I’m going to be riding the streetcar probably to every match now,” said Harper.
Downtown resident Laura Clark has been riding the streetcar since it opened in 2016. Clark said the streetcar will provide an easy way to relax at Berkley Riverfront Park.
“I don’t have to walk 1 ½ miles to get to the park now. Like a hike is fine, but if I want to hammock, I don’t want to work out.”
What happens next?
Mayor Quinton Lucas teased the future of streetcar development in Kansas City
“Our next phase is how we bridge those divides that have broken up our community for too long — across Troost Avenue, across the state line,” Lucas said.
There is no money for more streetcar expansions, though the Streetcar Authority has studied a variety of possibilities.
The KC Streetcar Authority is working on a feasibility study for an east-west route from the Crossroads to 18th and Vine, hosting community meetings and assessing the state of the corridor.
From 2022 to 2024, a study looked into the possibility of an east-west streetcar connecting the University of Kansas Medical Center and the VA Hospital along 39th Street and Linwood Boulevard.
Twice, the authority has researched extending the streetcar across the river into North Kansas City, first in 2014 and then in 2021-22.
Monthly streetcar ridership has more than doubled over the previous year after the Main Street extension opened in late October. On average, 9,945 people rode the streetcar each day in March 2026, compared to 3,187 daily riders the year before.
