Regional Transit Alliance
Citizens for sensible, modern and effective transit in the Kansas City metropolitan area
 

 

Benefits of Transit

(Data compiled by the Mid-America Regional Council)

 

Job Access

Access to jobs and employees is crucial to economic development in our sprawling region.

 

  • Businessmen Transit links workers to employment centers across the metro area, and offers an expanded labor pool to companies who find it tough to recruit and retain employees due to transportation barriers.
  • Access to workforce is attractive to major corporations looking to relocate.
  • In Kansas City, the region’s labor force loses $570 million in productivity each year while sitting in traffic. (Source: The 2001 Urban Mobility Report.) An integrated transit system with multiple service options for riders helps commuters make “working use” of their transit time.

 

Congestion

Public transit provides benefits both to those who use it and those who don’t.

 

  • Heavy traffic Congestion is increasing. In 1989 only 17 percent of Kansas City’s roadways were congested at peak hours. By 2003, that number had risen to 42 percent.
  • Small reductions in peak-hour urban traffic volumes can result in a proportionately larger delay reduction. A 5 percent reduction in traffic volumes on a congested highway may cause a 10 to 30 percent increase in average vehicle speeds. Modeling indicates that a percentage reduction in urban vehicle mileage tends to produce about twice the percentage reduction in traffic congestion delays." (Source: Victoria Transport Policy Institute)
  • In 2003, Kansas City area drivers lost 17 hours each to congestion, at an overall cost of $235 million dollars in time and excess fuel consumption. (Source: Texas Transportation Institute’s 2005 Urban Mobility Report)

 

The Regional Economy

Public transit saves riders and taxpayers millions annually, which is reinvested in the region’s economy.

 

  • MAX bus at Union Station One family member who commutes to work by transit can eliminate the need to buy a second or third car and can save the family between $3,000 and $8,000 per year.
  • For every dollar earned, the average American household spends 18 cents on transportation, 98 percent of which is for buying, maintaining and operating cars. The cost is higher in areas with few transportation choices, and will continue to rise as the gas prices increase.
  • According to data from the Consumer Price Index, the average price of a gallon of unleaded gas has risen from $1.15 in 1995 to $2.11 in 2005, an increase of 84 percent. The average Kansas Citian drives about 53 miles per day. Commuting on the bus just one day a week can save over $4 in gas — more than $200 in the course of a year — not to mention saving wear and tear on a car.
  • Fixed-guideway transit works especially well at fueling local development, which directly impacts property values. Developers in peer cities like Dallas and St. Louis have invested millions in corporate buildings, sports facilities and entertainment complexes around transit centers. Between 1994 and 1998, the increase in taxable value of properties near Dallas Area Rapid Transit stations was 25 percent higher than elsewhere in that metro area.

 

Mobility

Public transportation increases independence and mobility for many people, including commuters, youth, tourists, the elderly, people with disabilities, and those who don’t have access to cars.

 

  • Person in wheelchair on bus The Smart Moves regional transit plan would connect the region’s residents to the activities they participate in, whether they enjoy an urban or suburban lifestyle. Over 75 percent of the region’s residents will have access to transit within ¾ mile during peak periods on weekdays.
  • 10 percent of the Kansas City area population that is of driving age does not have access to an automobile. (Source: U.S. Census 2000)
  • The number of people ages 65 and over will increase by 72 percent in the next 10 years. So will their need to maintain connections to vital community services using expanded paratransit service options, wheelchair lift-equipped vehicles and low-floor, easy-to-board buses.

 

Neighborhoods

Transit supports healthy urban and suburban neighborhoods by:

 

  • City Market Helping to create strong neighborhood centers that are focal points for economic and social activities.
  • Decreasing the land area devoted to parking lots and roadways, making it available for green space or development.
  • Providing redevelopment opportunities at transit stops and stations.
  • Allowing for different population densities throughout the metropolitan area, thus offering greater choice in housing and lifestyles, making the region more attractive for relocation and to young people.
  • Making shops, offices, homes and community facilities more accessible to pedestrians and bicyclists.

 

Tourism

Public transit can enhance the tourist experience and encourage subsequent trips to our region.

 

  • The Legends, Wyandotte County Easy-to-use transit encourages tourism in the region by making travel more relaxing, convenient and affordable. Smart Moves mimics the subway systems of large cities, providing frequent service and fixed stops along major streets.
  • The Airport Arrow in the Smart Moves plan would link tourists at KCI Airport to the Downtown KCMO corridor hotels, convention center, and other hubs throughout the region.
  • Tourist destinations would be served along Rapid Rider corridors with stops at restaurants, entertainment and shopping districts, sports facilities, and arts and cultural attractions at places like Village West, Overland Park Convention Center, the River Market and the Country Club Plaza.
  • Transit would also help our region reduce the economic and aesthetic cost of providing visitor parking and help build a vibrant regional tourism industry.

 

The Environment

Investment in and use of public transportation provides direct environmental benefits.

 

  • Bike rack on bus Public transportation can help reduce dependency on gas — for a person who commutes 60 miles daily, an estimated 1,888 gallons of gas can be saved each year.
  • Public transportation helps promote cleaner air by reducing smog-producing pollutants, greenhouse gases and runoff from paved surfaces.
  • For each mile traveled, fewer pollutants are emitted by transit vehicles than by a single-passenger automobile. Buses emit 80 percent less carbon monoxide than a car. Each year in the metro region, transit reduces volatile organic compounds emitted by 100 tons, and nitrogen oxides emissions by over 130 tons.
  • Transit routes can be linked to regional greenways and bikeways.

 

Individual Health & Safety

  • Car exhaust According to National Safety Council data, riding public transit is nearly 170 times safer than automobile travel.
  • Public transit trips in the U.S. result in 190,000 fewer deaths, injuries and accidents annually than trips by car.
  • Public transportation can lessen health risks for Kansas Citians by reducing polluting emissions, providing a safer alternative to automobile travel, and helping reduce commute stress.
  • Greater access to medical care, including preventive care trips that might otherwise be forgone, results in a healthier population.