The KC Streetcar is now open for riders at the University of Missouri-Kansas City stop at 51st Street and Brookside Boulevard!
Fittingly, opening day of the KC Streetcar Main Street Extension on Oct. 24 was World Kangaroo Day because UMKC Roos and the city were hopping with a string of celebrations.
The morning started with a Kansas City celebration at the university’s neighboring Country Club Plaza stop, complete with a UMKC-wrapped Roo blue and gold streetcar spotlighting students and alumni. KC Roo pushed the ceremonial switch to start the first car bound south to the southernmost stop to UMKC with Chancellor Mauli Agrawal, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas and Tom Gerend, executive director of KC Streetcar Authority inside for the inaugural ride.
"This is a historic day for not only UMKC but all of Kansas City," Agrawal told media who gathered at UMKC for the morning-to-evening festivities.
Expanded Opportunities
The expanded KC Streetcar line opens up a world of possibilities for students, faculty and the broader community. The KC Streetcar is free to ride and connects UMKC to a vibrant corridor stretching through the Country Club Plaza, Midtown, Downtown Kansas City, the Crossroads Arts District, the Power & Light District and all the way to the River Market.
For UMKC students, this means even easier access to job and internship opportunities to complement the world-class education they get at Kansas City’s only Carnegie Research 1 university. They also can use the streetcar to get to housing, restaurants, nightlife, museums and cultural events.
"The streetcar is now going through the heart of Kansas City and to the largest university in Kansas City: the University of Missouri-Kansas City," Gerend told a crowd of hundreds who gathered even in a steady drizzle to celebrate the opening. "I want to thank all of you from downtown to UMKC to everyone all over the city who believed we could make this happen."
Next Stop: UMKC
UMKC Volker Campus isn’t just for students and employees. It’s a destination for all UMKC neighbors in Kansas City to enjoy. Whether you’re looking to cheer on NCAA Division 1 athletes, get support for your business, catch a show or just take a stroll through campus, there’s something for everyone at Kansas City’s top university.
Elected leaders and city officials provided remarks and attended festivities, including UMKC alumni Sharice Davids (BBA '07), U.S. representative for Kansas; George Guastello II (BBA '82, MBA '84), president and CEO at Union Station Kansas City; and Jan Marcason (MBA '99), city councilmember of Kansas City.
"This expanded streetcar is going to connect River Market all the way down to UMKC, where I graduated from," Davids said. "I do have to say as a former UMKC student, I absolutely would have loved to jump on this thing from Broadway Café and get to class. When I was walking to class and getting where I needed to go, I can tell you this would’ve made life so much easier. Passengers get to ride for free, and it’s going to make life a bit easier for folks to get to jobs, to school and to visit local businesses."
Celebrating on Campus
UMKC students, faculty, staff and visitors celebrated the opening at Student Union, where they were given UMKC streetcar T-shirt and totes and donuts and cider while the Mob Band played. Partygoers posed for pics with streetcar cutouts.
It's A Wrap!
UMKC has a streetcar decked in Roo blue and gold inside out, designed by UMKC Strategic Marketing and Communication. The exterior shows off our UMKC students and alumni: Pharmacy student Calvin Flemons is the one in the white coat; Bryson Gosch, Men's Soccer player is kicking a ball; Laney Mabry (BBA '25) is wearing a Roos shirt; and Hannah Ruf (BBA '25) is the one in grad cap among. The UMKC logo is accompanied by the words "World Class. Right Now." and celebrates UMKC's Carnegie Research 1 designation.
A Roo with Heart
The UMKC stop includes a KC Heart sculpture designed by UMKC urban planning and design student, Ben Walters. Walters designed the streetcar-inspired heart for the 2024 Parade of Hearts. It was generously donated by his employer, Synetic Technologies, to live permanently at the KC Streetcar stop!
Learning in Action
UMKC engineering students tour KC Streetcar construction in April 2023.
UMKC students were active participants throughout the planning and construction of the $352 million KC Streetcar Main Street extension through experiences including:
- Construction site tours with the builders
- Internships with Kansas City firms working on the KC Streetcar
- Senior capstone classes collaborating with the KC Streetcar Authority and the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority
Built by Roos
UMKC urban planning student Elliot Smith was one of many students who worked on the Main Street extension via an internship.
This streetcar extension did not just arrive at UMKC, our Roos helped shape it. UMKC students and alumni played key roles in the design, engineering, urban planning, marketing and logistics that brought the Main Street Extension to life.
KC Streetcar History
Want to know more about Kansas City's streetcar history? UMKC professor David Trowbridge has a virtual audio tour of sites along the KC Streetcar route available on the Clio History App.
