KC metro boosts public transportation for the World Cup. But will it stick around?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- KC2026 established ConnectKC26 to take fans to World Cup festivities and matches.
- Johnson County launched free Airport Drop and Ride shuttles to Lenexa and Overland Park.
- Johnson County United Link will run three temporary circulator routes from June 9 to July.
Kansas City is putting its best foot forward, showing off the greater metropolitan area and adding additional public services for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The plan, and hope, is that some of these services will remain in place long after the international soccer tournament — which begins in about two weeks — concludes in July.
The Kansas City World Cup committee, KC2026, has established a bus network around the metro. Called ConnectKC26, it will serve as fans’ main connection to various World Cup festivities and matches. Even amid budget cuts, the Kansas City Area Transit Authority (KCATA) has added routes during the tournament.
Johnson County, meanwhile, has set up a Johnson County United Airport Drop and Ride, which will provide free shuttle services from Kansas City International Airport to Lenexa City Center and the Overland Park Convention Center.
The Overland Park Convention Center will be a prime hub for transportation and other centralized services throughout the World Cup. It is being converted to a “Consular Services Center” in support of scores of foreign visitors, teams and delegates.
The airport shuttle service begins Monday. It will run with 30-minute frequency, up to 19 hours a day, on weekdays until July 17. Then the service switches to 60-minute intervals.
Also in place is the Johnson County United Link, a web of three temporary, circulatory bus routes connecting residents to such other JoCo destinations as Leawood, Lenexa and Merriam. It will run June 9-July 13. Riders can also use the system to transfer to ConnectKC26 buses to the FIFA Fan Festival and games at Arrowhead Stadium (which will be dubbed ”Kansas City Stadium” during the tournament).
When the Johnson County Board of Commissioners green-lit these efforts last year, their goal was to sustain added services beyond the World Cup — as long the funding lasts. BOCC chairman Mike Kelly told The Star on Friday that keeping the new routes is vital to improving infrastructure and helping the region stay connected.
“We knew that there is a level of transportation that folks from Europe or other countries have that doesn’t exist within the Kansas City metro area,” Kelly said. “So as we continue to grow and develop as a city, we thought what a great opportunity to showcase how public transit could enhance not only an opportunity for tourism, but also ... the quality of life for people that live and work here.”
Throughout the region’s World Cup preparations, KC2026 CEO Pam Kramer has emphasized the importance of collaboration across state lines and throughout the metro. It’s one way KC may be providing services some other host cities are not — or is able to provide them in a more cost-effective manner.
Cooperation fuels Johnson County United. Federal and state grants make up the bulk of the near $6 million cost of operating the Johnson County Link routes. But the effort also received $400,000 from various Johnson County cities, in amounts proportional to their size.
Some degree of concern about what comes next, after the FIFA and the World Cup depart KC, would appear to be warranted. Over the years, the World Cup has been known to drain the coffers of host cities and countries. The biggest culprit is often a stadium or other venue built solely for the soccer tournament.
That hasn’t occurred here in Kansas City. Instead, local elected officials like Kelly hope playing host to this particular World Cup will mean new resources stick around. He hopes what’s been done to prepare for the massive event will set a fresh standard across the metro’s public services — particularly in the realm of public transportation.
“When we think about our region and how we continue to grow and rise as a region,” Kelly said, “a more robust, reliable public transportation system is one of those things that’ll help take us to even that next echelon.”
