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City(ies), County(ies), State:
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Leavenworth, Wyandotte, and Johnson counties in Kansas and Clay, Platte, Jackson, and Cass counties in Missouri
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Supplementary Project Mode(s):
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* Active Transportation
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Just by choosing transit as a component of any given trip, a person most often must also take advantage of other modes. For example, a commuter could drive 10 minutes to a mobility hub with a park & ride, get on a bus, ride for 20 minutes, and then get off and walk 5 minutes to his or her office. Another person might bike 10 minutes to a bus stop, put her bike on the bus and ride for 10 minutes and then get off and bike 15 minutes to her final destination. Besides biking and walking, car and bike share as well as ride hailing are all modes that are encouraged by investment in transit. Smart Moves calls for a network of over 60 mobility hubs that provide seamless connections between modes.
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Project Description: |
The Smart Moves 3.0 plan envisions a mobility landscape that includes efficient, high-ridership transit service linked by well-located mobility hubs where riders can transfer from one fixed route to another or connect with mobility services to get where they need to go. This plan also recognizes that efficient transit thrives on density. Smart Moves 3.0 serves as the regional blueprint for implementation of a new and improved transit and mobility system. Transit agencies, local governments and the Mid-America Regional Council will use this plan to guide the development of new projects and initiatives that seek to:
• Increase the number of jobs accessible by transit and mobility services.
• Increase ridership of transit and use of other mobility options.
• Increase development/redevelopment along high-capacity corridors and near mobility hubs.
• Increase availability of customer information and resources through technology.
• Increase funding for transit and mobility services.
• Decrease greenhouse gas emissions and other transportation-related pollutants.
The intent of this project is to make using transit and mobility services an attractive and viable option for more Kansas City area residents and workers. By including a network of over 60 mobility hubs that connect different modes and allow residents and workers to easily transfer from one to the other, Smart Moves 3.0 aims to further increase the travel choices available in the region. Expanding the region’s transit system (in terms of route options, frequency of service, days of service) and other mobility services (in terms of mobility hubs, car share, bike share, microtransit, vanpool, carpool, etc.) will not only benefit those who choose to or depend on transit/mobility services but others as well. For instance, expanding the transit system and increasing ridership will take more cars off the road, thereby decreasing traffic for those that choose to/must drive. This decreased traffic will also benefit bicyclists and pedestrians in terms of making their travel safer and more pleasant as well as improving air quality. Decreased traffic/congestion will also benefit the movement of freight as well.
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Scope: |
This application is specifically for the network of 63 mobility hubs that for the first time was included in the 3.0 iteration of the Smart Moves update. Mobility hubs are central places or districts that act as converging points for public transit and an integrated suite of mobility services, scaled for their respective environments and functions. Mobility hubs are also areas where there is an intensive concentration of working, living, shopping and/or playing in the form of mixed-use development.
Example typologies, characteristics and criteria for how mobility hubs might function, and their anticipated role in the Kansas City metropolitan area, are provided below. Each of the following four typologies of mobility hubs serves a slightly different purpose:
• Destinations — A Destination mobility hub will typically have the most transit routes, service choices and amenities available. This type should be placed along existing or proposed high-frequency transit routes, and will most likely be located in densely populated locations within the Kansas City metropolitan area and along major transportation spines. These locations are also most likely to be integrated into a transit-supportive or transit-oriented development pattern.
• Junctions — A Junction mobility hub will typically be placed at connections between two or more transit routes. Some of these are likely to be at locations where high-frequency transit service connects with lower-frequency service routes, while others may be located where lower-frequency transit routes intersect. These locations can provide opportunities for riders to make direct connections between transit routes or switch to other modes to complete their trips. Junctions can be integrated into transit-supportive or transit-oriented development patterns where existing densities and development interest warrant them.
• Gateways — A Gateway mobility hub is typically located near the end of a higher-frequency transit route, furthest away from the urban core. These hubs are classified by their ability to serve as gateways for riders to enter the regional transportation system. These locations may be located in suburban or rural areas with lower densities, but will still incorporate transit-supportive design elements to facilitate mode transfers and create activity centers that are appropriately scaled for their particular context. These hubs are expected to offer fewer amenities than more centrally-located mobility hubs, but will often include park-and-ride lots.
• Local — Local mobility hubs will provide opportunities for areas located on the outer fringes of the metropolitan area that are not specifically served by the regional transportation plan’s proposed transit routes. These hubs can serve several functions, including as a portal into the regional transit system (like a Gateway Hub), albeit not necessarily connected to a transit route. In this case, the hub can become a convenient gathering place for carpool or vanpool riders, or can provide a meeting place for those sharing rides via shuttles or other on-demand services.
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