UMKC Student ID Offers More Transit Options Than Ever Before

Starting this fall, the UMKC student ID will take students to places it never did before.

Working also as a bus pass, the University of Missouri-Kansas City student ID is as good for getting around Kansas City as it is for gaining admission to sporting events, checking out books at the library and buying a meal.

But for the first time this fall, UMKC student IDs will also be good on suburban Johnson County, Kan., routes as part of an effort to create a regional transit network that is seamless and easy to use.

Now, UMKC students who live on the Kansas side of the state line can take a bus from Overland Park directly to the doorstep of UMKC with just a swipe of their ID.

No more digging around for exact change. No worries about transfers. One swipe of the ID and students are on their way to their destination.

In 2011, the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority joined with UMKC to offer bus passes as part of the school’s student activity fee. Students pay $14.57 each semester for a transportation fee. The fee gives them unlimited access to all Metro and Johnson County routes, except the K-10 transit service operating between Lawrence and Overland Park.

Classes started Aug. 24 at UMKC, and KCATA will bring a MAX bus on campus and answer questions about transit service:

Time: 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Dates: Thursday, Aug. 27 and Friday, Aug. 28
Where: North side of the Student Union, UMKC Volker Campus

Transit gives UMKC students easy connections to the university’s medical school on Hospital Hill via the Troost MAX Green Line. Rapid bus service on the Main St. and Troost MAX routes also gives students convenient access to downtown venues like the Sprint Center and the Power & Light District, the Crossroads District and Crown Center, along with The Plaza, Westport, Brookside and Waldo.

With the expansion into Johnson County, UMKC students can now use their student IDs to ride the 556/856 - Metcalf Plaza Connex directly from Overland Park to campus. Stops for that JO Connex route include downtown Overland Park, 95th & Metcalf, Rosana Square and the Mission Transit Center. 556 also makes connections to other Johnson County Transit routes.

On average, UMKC students take more than 1,400 trips every weekday with their IDs. Main Street MAX, Troost MAX and 55-55th Street are the top three routes for UMKC students.