The Kansas City region will get a $1.2 million federal grant for a program to double the number of jobs accessible by public transit over the next decade, officials announced today.
The “KC Workforce Connex” initiative is an attempt to improve the city’s dismal rating on transit. Only 18 percent of jobs in the region can be reached by transit in 90 minutes or less, the Brookings Institution reported.
That ranks the Kansas City region 90th of the 100 largest metro areas.
The Mid-America Regional Council applied for the grant for the Regional Transit Coordinating Committee in partnership with the area’s four transit agencies, the MARC press release states.
“The employment rate is up and more companies are hiring, but there is often a disconnect between where people live and where the jobs are,” said Ron Achelpohl. MARC transportation director.
“Our public transit currently offers little suburb-to-suburb service,” he said, “and we want to identify ways to address that.”
They will focus on key corridors branching out from the central business district, he said. “With this new grant, we’ll be able to explore ways to expand transit to connect more people to job opportunities, especially in high-growth employment centers in suburban areas.”
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