KC 2026 transportation director praises Kansas City, Kansas school district's World Cup transit role

The transportation director for the KC 2026 World Cup host committee told the meeting that Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools (KCKPS, USD 500) played a key role in moving spectators to matches, saying, "They moved over 5,000 people every match." The speaker said the district ran the Independence Center Park and Ride with "very, literally no waits."

The official, who did not give a personal name in the remarks, described the transportation director role for the KC 2026 host committee as covering "all modes of transportation" for the World Cup, including airport transfers and regional connections for spectators. The speaker said they grew up in Kansas City, Kansas and attended KCKPS from pre-K through graduation, and credited the district's staff — particularly bus drivers — with professionalism and pride during the events.

"I have a passion for transit in Kansas City," the transportation director said, framing the remarks as both personal testimony and an operational report. The speaker emphasized that KCKPS was the only school district involved in the World Cup transportation program in the area and said that the district's bus drivers ran the Independence Center Park and Ride and "did it with pride and honor."

The remarks in the transcript record operational claims (not independently verified here) about throughput and wait times at the Independence Center Park and Ride. Meeting details such as the body convening the session and the date of these remarks were not specified in the transcript.