Kansas City to get light rail

Kansas City (Missouri, U.S.A.) will soon have light rail as a public transit option.

The issue of funding light rail in the city was put to a vote, and was approved by voters in April 2006. The voter-approved light rail plan will be funded with a 3/8-cent sales tax that now pays for most of the local bus company’s operations.

Officials are currently in the design phase, with construction set to begin in 2009.

Mayor-elect Mr. Mark Funkhouser wants to expand the rail system further, developing a regional light rail system. This is still being discussed at the political level.

Private and commercial vehicles are a leading source of greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants. Reducing vehicle use and using alternative forms of transportation and alternative fuels are some approaches to reducing these vehicular emissions. For more information, please visit www.iclei.org/ccp.

Kansas City is one of 139 local governments in the U.S.A. that are currently Members of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability. For more information on ICLEI and its activities in the U.S.A., please visit www.iclei.org/usa.

Source: “Regional light-rail talk gains ground”, The Kansas City Star, 13 April 2007.