Should Kansas City expand the streetcar line? It depends

Kansas City’s streetcar line is a two-week success story.

More passengers than predicted have piled into the sleek vehicles since they began rolling on their 2.2-mile route along downtown streets on May 6.

Here comes the $200-million-plus question: Should the system be expanded by more than 3.5 miles?

That’s the next, logical step in improving this form of public transit, according to backers. No need to wait a year or two to see whether the initial blush of excitement wears off. They appear ready to pounce soon and seek federal and local funds for a bigger project.

We’re not ready to embrace that reasoning, partly because details have not yet been released and — more notably — city officials have not held public meetings to get feedback on the idea.

Any extension depends on a few factors.

▪ Where will the streetcars travel next, and will nearby residents embrace them?

Voters in 2014 considered a larger system that included a line that basically continued down Main Street, past the current Union Station ending point and toward the Country Club Plaza and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

That route makes good sense. Voters in the Main Street corridor backed the 2014 plan, which included two new routes on the East Side. But voters in that part of town sank the overall proposal.

In the near future, business leaders and residents along Main Street presumably will have more to say about any extension. They now have a much better idea of the construction-related problems the streetcars can create — but also the potential foot traffic and passenger convenience they can bring.

▪ Who will pay for a bigger system?

Streetcar backers used a controversial, limited ballot election to get access to millions in local property and sales tax dollars for the downtown spine. They could try that approach again. Or they could ask a wider audience to back the extension.

The financing proposal needs to be sensible and realistic. People may love the free rides on the streetcar right now. That doesn’t necessarily mean Midtown and Plaza area businesses and residents are willing to pay for a bigger system.

Getting access to federal funds obviously would boost the project’s chances of success. Mayor Sly James and others will have to be on top of that priority.

Many Kansas Citians have turned from early doubters into supporters of the current streetcar line. A well-conceived plan to extend it might make a great deal of sense.

This story was originally published May 20, 2016 at 4:08 PM with the headline "Should Kansas City expand the streetcar line? It depends."