Johnson County outlines airport‑to‑Lenexa pilot for World Cup; Lenexa staff to consider $200,000 match

Johnson County officials briefed the Lenexa City Council on a proposed pilot transit service linking Kansas City International Airport (MCI) to Johnson County destinations, including Lenexa City Center, intended to operate around the 2026 World Cup and to test whether an airport‑to‑county route could become a lasting service.

Aaron Otto, representing Johnson County Government, and Josh Powers, the county transit director, described a Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) study that identified Lenexa City Center and the Overland Park Convention Center as promising airport‑transit endpoints. Otto said the county has placed a refundable deposit on an option to lease up to 50 new 35‑passenger buses and has pursued a regional grant to fund operations.

“The MARC study had these two different option sites,” Otto said, describing a circular shuttle routing and a target 20‑minute headway during peak operation. Otto told council members operating costs are roughly $10,000 per day for the airport service, and he said the county applied for a roughly $2,000,000 grant with a proposed local cost match totaling about $600,000 split equally among Johnson County, Overland Park and Lenexa.

Otto said the county’s deposit on the buses totals about $1,500,000 and is refundable under the lease option until next year. The county’s operating model estimates roughly 260 service days under the $2.6 million budget model ($2,000,000 grant plus $600,000 local match), a figure Otto described as driven by funding rather than a fixed operational plan.

Council members asked whether services would cross state lines; Otto and Powers said the county intends to limit regular service to the Kansas side of the state line, with only a route connection to Fan Fest at the World War I Memorial (which will cross into Missouri’s event footprint). Powers said he is coordinating with the KC 2026 transportation working group and that security restrictions around the Truman Sports Complex will be addressed by other agencies.

County staff described an optional “circulator” route inside Johnson County to move fans from transit drop‑off points to the Fan Fest site, but they said no major grant has been identified to pay for that circulator; its cost estimates were presented as a “straw man” for conversation. Otto said the circulator would likely run only during the World Cup window and would be funded only if additional dollars could be identified.

City staff told council members they are working on a brief memorandum of understanding with Johnson County and expect to present a request at the council’s March 4 meeting asking Lenexa to commit $200,000 of transient guest tax revenue as part of Lenexa’s local cost match. City staff said transient-guest-tax funds support tourism activities and that staff believes the airport link fits that purpose.

Ending: County and Lenexa staff will refine an MOU for the airport transit pilot and staff will present a funding request for Lenexa’s portion of the local match at a future council meeting.