The Kansas City Council unanimously voted Thursday to make public transit in the city free of charge. (Photo: Paul Sableman/Flickr/cc)
Lawmakers in Kansas City, Missouri took a “visionary step” on Thursday by unanimously voting to make public transportation in the city free of charge, setting the stage for it to be the first major U.S. city to have free public transit.
The Kansas City Council voted to direct the city manager to set aside $8 million to eliminate the $1.50 per ride fare that currently applies to the city’s bus system.
Some frequent riders could save about $1,000 per year under the new plan, according to KCUR, the city’s public radio station.
“It’d help me out a lot,” college student Michael Mumford, who rides the city’s buses at least once per day, told the station. “Put some change in my pocket…buy some books for class.”
The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority also expressed approval, with CEO Robbie Makinen telling KCUR that residents will be able to put the money they save on transportation toward other necessities, boosting the economy.
The city still needs to work out details of the proposal, including how it will be funded and where that money will come from, according to local news station KSHB.
Supporters of the measure on social media pointed out that free public transit could have positive impacts on economic inequality, the city’s efforts to fight the climate crisis, and mass incarceration—as other cities, like New York, are cracking down on public transit fare evasion […]
via ‘Now Let’s Do This Everywhere’: Kansas City, Missouri Approves Free Public Transit for All
The Most Revolutionary Act 
Set the example of your One World Order rulers!m Bow to your Urban Authority!
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KenshoHomestead, your comment is a bit cryptic. I take it you’re being ironic, right?
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Well, good for Kansas City, and a great step forward for egalitarianism and a greener future. I’ve always been a big fan of public transit and love living and travelling in places that have good systems.
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To be honest, Katherine, I’m getting a bit fed up with Green New Deal scenarios that involve everyone clogging up the roads with their electric vehicles. In my mind, there isn’t nearly enough emphasis on public transportation. The poor won’t be driving electric vehicles.
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Well said, Dr. Bramhall. Further to that, what about those “rare metals” needed to create the batteries? Isn’t part or the reason for the destabilization of the Bolivian government because that nation has lithium which the Empire wants to pirate?
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Yep, absolutely. Lithium extraction continues to rip off third world countries big time, both in terms of environmental damage and labor exploitation.
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I live in New York. For some reason, I only heard about this yesterday from a friend. All the policing that is done because of fare evasion is a waste of resources that would not be necessary if transit were free.
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I agree totally, Brendon. Public transit in New York is for the poor. The wealthy usually rely on cabs and now Uber.
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HOLD ON! This could lead to more people using public transportation!
What kind of plan is that! Damn socialism!
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The problem with socialists is they believe that the money they earn should go to bettering themselves and their communities. Everybody knows that money belongs to the rich, they’re the only ones who know what to do with it. Yeah, damn socialists, they’re destroying these countries with their incessant whinings and wasteful waste. We need more walls, more work camps, more segregation and more central government, security forces and bureaucracy. Time to take back control and show who’s master and who’s slave. Time for true grit; to demonstrate that being promised a thing and being charged for a thing has nothing to do with whether you get the thing.
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Tube, from a practical standpoint we could always round up the poor and put them in camps, but that’s a lot more expensive.
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