Streetcar to KCI is the ‘grand kahuna,’ Lucas says — making KC a ‘real’ place
When it comes to the expansion of the streetcar, Mayor Quinton Lucas said getting it to Kansas City International Airport would be the “grand kahuna.”
The comment came during an interview on KC Studio’s “Artful Connections Along the Streetcar” podcast, when host Michael Mackie asked Lucas about his wish list for future streetcar extensions.
Lucas said he has “probably three things” on that list. First, he said, is an 18th and Vine link running along an 18th Street east-west connection through the Crossroads Arts District.
“Going that east–west, I think, is big for us,” Lucas said.
Second, Lucas said he’d like to bridge the state line divide, noting discussions with the University of Kansas Health System about what an extension along 39th Street could look like, despite the corridor being tight.
“Then the grand kahuna is how do we get to the airport,” Lucas said.
Lucas said he feels like Kansas City is already a great city — a “wonderful” one — but compared that step to Pinocchio’s transformation from puppet to “a real boy.”
“I mean, it would just be this, ‘I’m a real place now,’ when you could really get everywhere you need to be,” Lucas said. “I think that’d be great for KC.”
The mayor’s comment came during a longer interview about how the streetcar line links the River Market, downtown, Crown Center and the Country Club Plaza, putting arts and cultural destinations along the route within easy reach.
He added that the streetcar itself has become an attraction, attracting riders from outside the city. He encouraged visitors who might be coming for one stop to hop off at other destinations along the line.
