I’ve written before about one of our favorite KC field trips–going to KC’s Waldo neighborhood (75th and Wornall) and hopping the Metro’s MAX bus for Crown Center/Union Station. It makes for an excellent adventure, and many lessons to be learned: the art of conserving gas and helping the environment by taking public transportation, not to mention the life skill of getting oneself from point A to point B by reading maps and following a bus schedule!
Another public transit trip has been brought to my attention– and this one is great for all you Johnson Countians. Did you know that you can take “The JO” (Johnson County’s public commuter bus system) all the way to Union Station? You could plan a half-day trip and check out Dinosaurs Unearthed–or Kaleidoscope– and save yourself the gas money while you’re at it!!
Route “M” (Midday) is your key to taking half-day trips to and from points in Kansas City from Johnson County, KS. There are several major park-and-ride locations in Johnson County on the way to Crown Center, Union Station and downtown Kansas City. These are: Great Mall of the Great Plains (151st Street at I-35), Downtown Olathe, Johnson County Community College (College Blvd at Quivira), Oak Park Mall (95th Street at Quivira), Metcalf South Shopping Center (95th Street at Metcalf), and the Transit Center at 6000 Lamar in Mission, KS.
From any of these locations, you can take a morning commuter bus to Union Station and return via Route M (leaving from Union Station shortly after 1pm), or take Route M to Union Station and return on one of the afternoon commuter routes.
Regular fare on The JO is $2.00 for adults, $1.50 for kids 6-17, and free for kids 5 and under. For extra adventure, you can transfer from The JO to MAX or another Metro bus to visit other attractions up and down the MAX corridor stretching from Waldo on the south to Downtown and River Market on the north. Your JO driver can give you a transfer good for 2 hours on any Metro route. For your return, pay the regular fare on the Metro ($1.50 for adults, 75 cents for kids 6-17) and get a transfer that’s good on The JO. Here’s a summary schedule of some of the buses you can take in combination with Route M (note that it’s on 24-hour clock time!)
