KCRag Forum

a new committee at MARC -- the Regional Transit Coordinating Council -- is overseeing efforts to better coordinate transit services in the region and address funding shortfalls. they've been meeting for awhile and working on "quick wins" (for example, a "de facto" regional pass takes effect april 1). in addition, they've convened a public forum for advocates and riders to provide feedback on the council's work, and on our transit system in general. the next forum is on march 27, where an update on the effort to rebrand the entire regional transit system -- including streetcar and bike share -- will be provided:

http://marc.org/Transportation/Committe ... lder-Forum

participating agencies are MARC, KCATA, The JO, IndeBus, Jackson County, the Streetcar Authority, Unified Government, and MoDOT/KDOT.

if you want to use a single pass on all of the region's transit systems, you can do so starting now with a "de facto" regional pass -- the JO's standard pass is now accepted on all regular JO, KCATA, UG, and IndeBus routes. buy online at thejo.com

a true regional pass is in the works, and will probably take the form of a smart card and/or mobile ticketing app.

offboard ticket machines are also being discussed.

offboard with rfid is way more ada friendly to the point it needs to be the default thing cities move to. discussing should be long past, it should be needing money. you can wear a card on a lanyard and someone in a wheelchair can pause for a second, swipe it for their fare, and keep moving. like with building doors you can put readers at multiple heights to a central computer so one is wheelchair/kid height, another adult height

keep in mind ADA friendly isn't just about convenience but dignity too. someone in a wheelchair or crutches would have to make extra effort to get money out for onboard fares. it's not dignified to be the person that slows down the line. offboard fares they can show up slightly early, pay, get everything put away and just get on board quickly with their ticket/card.

independence will be in google transit/maps soon, making regional trip planning a possibility. new regional transit brand will be presented to the public in june, which would apply to all agencies regardless of where the funding comes form. regional fare study also in progress.

the proposed regional brand is "ride KC", which would apply to all agencies (KCATA, The JO, IndyBus, UG, and Streetcar Authority). here's a presentation about it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T94IDU2IhSI

KCATA will take over management of The JO starting in 2015: http://www.kcata.org/news/johnson_count ... with_kcata

FAQ - http://www.kcata.org/news/questions_ans ... solidation

chuck ferguson, former planning director at the JO, started this week as KCATA's new planning director.

the regional transit coordinating council also approved the "RideKC" regional brand, which will debut first with the downtown streetcar project.

DaveKCMO wrote:chuck ferguson, former planning director at the JO, started this week as KCATA's new planning director.

the regional transit coordinating council also approved the "RideKC" regional brand, which will debut first with the downtown streetcar project.

So with they re-brand all the buses, route maps etc so they look like one transit agency to the users and the only difference is some bus drivers will make three times what others make?

Not sure about Ferguson running the ATA though. The only thing he really brings to them is his connections with the Railroad companies. I'm not sure he really "gets" urban transit or how it should function.

GRID wrote:

DaveKCMO wrote:chuck ferguson, former planning director at the JO, started this week as KCATA's new planning director.

the regional transit coordinating council also approved the "RideKC" regional brand, which will debut first with the downtown streetcar project.

So with they re-brand all the buses, route maps etc so they look like one transit agency to the users and the only difference is some bus drivers will make three times what others make?

Not sure about Ferguson running the ATA though. The only thing he really brings to them is his connections with the Railroad companies. I'm not sure he really "gets" urban transit or how it should function.

a) more important than branding, route planning and fare policy will be integrated. that's important to riders.
b) he's not running KCATA, only director of planning. he worked there for 18 years prior to joining the JO.

KCATA board approves regional brand (this is the last step before implementation planning begins): http://www.kcata.org/news/kcata_board_a ... ual_budget

johnson county has approved the final agreement for KCATA to take over managing their routes: http://www.kansascity.com/opinion/opn-c ... 24658.html

The move could save Johnson County up to $450,000 a year. That’s good, and so is the idea that this kind of cooperation could help the county expand its service to serve more people in that car-happy part of our region.

The move should take its final step next Wednesday, when the full ATA board approves the decision and the agreement is signed by all sides.

kcata and johnson county signed their interlocal agreement today. it takes effect in february 2015.

http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/n ... ement.html

kcata will now take over management of the indebus system that's funded by independence: http://www.examiner.net/article/20150602/NEWS/150609765

KCK local routes and streetcar are still managed independently.

The city will still control where bus routes go and set its own policies.

Is it just me or does this seem to be worded carefully?

DaveKCMO wrote:kcata will now take over management of the indebus system that's funded by independence: http://www.examiner.net/article/20150602/NEWS/150609765

this takes effect july 1.

So what was the end result of Indebus splitting off?

some new buses in the "rideKC" livery that you may see on the streets very soon.

new RideKC buses hit the streets tomorrow:

^ Is that a metro or jo bus? Are they going to rebrand all the buses (metro an jo) this way?

GRID wrote:^ Is that a metro or jo bus? Are they going to rebrand all the buses (metro an jo) this way?

There's four bus systems actually. Kcata currently runs three of the