June 19, 2021

It’s approximately 44 miles from Olathe to KCI Airport.

And it’s approximately 43 miles from Lee’s Summit to the KCI airport.

We should be thinking about building a light trail from both Olathe and Lee’s Summit.

In Kansas today they are talking about adding new lanes to Highway 69 and possibly making it a toll road because of the traffic.

14 or 15 years ago when Clay Chastain was talking about the light trail and Lloyd Frank was talking 11 1/2 miles of subway more or less following the old country club streetcar route from 95th and to the City Market and in 2013 Lloyd Frank did a east, west in a line of 23rd and Manchester to the old Kemper Arena.

Clay Chastain and Lloyd Frank were to have a meeting with few of the City Council people to discuss this plan and there was a snowstorm in December of 2007 and the meeting was canceled and the meeting was never rescheduled.

There’s was a gentleman working with ATA at the time of the meeting, John Dobies that was going to do a rail study but the meeting was canceled.

We don’t think there was ever a rail study done on the on the Clay Chastain and Lloyd Frank rail plan.

John Dobies project manager of the ATA‘s light rail study team said in the Kansas City Star article he didn’t think it was a very reasonable plan but said the ATA would look into it.

That was 14 or 15 years ago so it’s time that we looked into a rail study a rail study for the KCI Airport, a rail study for the expansion of the Isle of Capri Casino.

Today it wouldn’t take much to extend the Rock Island Rail study on to the Isle of Capri Casino!

Studied, Studied, Studied, so it’s time for us to start someplace and let’s start with the 44 miles from Olathe to KCI and the 43 miles from Lee’s Summit to KCI!

John Ivey

Treasurer for the Citizens4Progress