Fantasy transit map of Missouri (Kansas City, St. Louis: neighborhoods, live, airport)

[Chaake01]

Okay so this is just a fantasy pipe dream of mine but this is my fantasy of a transit network acrosss Missouri.
St.Louis Metropolitan area:
• Expand Metrolink to several new lines across the region that connects all of the metro area
• create regional commuter rail to connect St. Louis with suburbs like Florissant, Clayton, St Charles, East St.Louis, Collinsvillle, Belleville, Edwardsville, Kirkwood, Alton, Arnold, Chesterfield, union, Washington, etc.

Kansas City Metropolitan Area:
•greatly expand the streetcar to include it into a much broader regional light rail network that includes lines to the airport and suburbs like Overland Park, Kansas City, Kansas, Olathe, Lee’s Summit, blue springs, independence and liberty,
• create a large regional commuter rail system that includes lines to liberty, St.Joseph, Atchison, Kansas, Leavenworth, Lawrence, Olathe, Overland Park, Grandview, Belton, blue springs, grain valley, Odessa, and Warrensburg

Both STL/KC metros
• greatly expand Amtrak routes to includes lines to Indianapolis, Nashville, Memphis, Dallas, Houston, OKC, Denver, Omaha, Des Moines, Minneapolis, and Springfield, MO as well as extra round trips between KC and Stl as well as between them and Chicago

Springfield-Branson metro area:
• create robust light rail system in Springfield area
• create regional rail between Springfield and Branson

Columbia-Jefferson city metro areas:
• Open Amtrak connection to Columbia by building connection line that branches off after the hermann and Sedalia stations respectively
•create a regional rail connection between Columbia and Jefferson City (bridge will have to get built across Missouri River but again it’s just a fantasy)
• open BRT lines in both Columbia and Jefferson City


Again, this is just a fantasy of mine so it might be too unrealistic but one can dream right

[Okey Dokie]

Yeah, one can dream. I dream Brad Pitt shows up at my door and wants to marry me.

[Take a History Class]

At least you admit it's a fantasy. Light rail fanatics have been going on for my entire life but there are two things working against them.

1. The United States is HUGE. Today's small regional airliners (think the Embraer 175) are much more efficient than adding infrastructure for high speed rail that separates it from the existing freight traffic.

2. Reliable high speed internet and cheaper video conference tech has obviated the need for some business travel.

[sub]

I could see Kansas City eventually ending up with something like what you see in Salt Lake City: a streetcar/light rail hybrid system of some sort that connects the air port to tourist spots and the denser neighborhoods.
I agree with the OP: Airport, downtown, Independence Square (which would also cover the stadiums and areas most likely to use it), North Oak Trafficway, Brookside, Waldo, downtown Liberty, Lee's Summit and Overland Park, and out towards the speedway. Also a direct line from the airport to the heart of Johnson County, perhaps along Metcalf... give or take.

As for the state, I think incorporating Columbia somehow would be good. Perhaps just a spur from Jeff City would be the most doable.
A line from St. Louis to Springfield (maybe Joplin) would get a lot of use. That would also connect Rolla and Fort Leonard Wood to the bigger airport.
Not sure about KC to Springfield. There's not a lot of non-lake traffic through there. Compare traffic on 44 to that of 13/7, and you'll notice a huge difference.
However, NWA is quite the thing these days, so maybe a line down to there from KC which could complete the triangle.

Not sure about connecting Branson, but maybe.
One thing I've often thought about for Branson is some sort of rail, maybe elevated, to run along 76 from Branson Landing to Silver Dollar City. That would most certainly be heavily utilized. That place is a gridlocked mess in the summer.

Not sure what St. Louis could use, but I'm sure there are those who would like to expand what they have.
Southeast MO is already served by Amtrak's Texas Eagle.

The problem with Amtrak is that it's poorly run and subject to boneheaded decision making, a trademark of the U.S. government.
People do use it, those trains you see are often full.
I know from experience. There is most certainly a market for it.

It should be obvious to most anyone here that I'm generally pretty conservative, but I have no problem with building and maintaining infrastructure. Privatization might work better, but it could also be more complicated. I'm not dead set either way honestly.
Part of that infrastructure could be rail and not just wider and wider highways. More choices, more freedom.

Also, people who don't particularly want to be on the roads but have to be out of necessity, would be off the roads. Think about that for a minute.

Then there's the air travel argument where even the cheapest can get pretty expensive especially if you don't live near hubs or whatever, which might make it a little more tolerable for some.

[Take a History Class]

Originally Posted by sub

The problem with Amtrak is that it's poorly run and subject to boneheaded decision making, a trademark of the U.S. government.
People do use it, those trains you see are often full.
I know from experience. There is most certainly a market for it.

The problem with Amtrak is that the trains are capable of going 100 mph but since they share trackage with freight, you'll go 90 mph for 20 minutes then stop on a siding while a freight goes by, or go 20 mph for 15 minutes, again to avoid smacking into another train.

These days, at least in the states I frequent, everybody drives 80-85 MPH on the interstate. That was not the case when I was a young, but it makes rail travel even less palatable. I'm guessing Amtrak is full for the same reason Greyhound busses are full...it's cheap if you book well in advance.

[sub]

Interesting news out of Missouri:
https://fox4kc.com/news/modot-wants-...ringfield/amp/