By now you've probably heard Kansas City is soon to have a streetcar system, but have you tried parking along the route? Here's what you need to know:
Any part of your car crosses the white line, you'll have a fine
The ticket for not properly parking along the route is about $70, but if a streetcar cannot pass because of your parking (or lack of), that price will jump to anywhere between $200 and $300 for the required tow.
"We do have to stop, wait, call the police and call a tow truck," says KC Streetcar Authority's Donna Mandelbaum.
Hey delivery trucks, you can't be there either!
Even if it is a short delivery, it only takes five minutes for the streetcar to potentially come up against you.
"We're really asking property owners to get in touch with their delivery vendors and say, 'Hey, we need to find a place off of Main Street and off of streetcar route for you to make deliveries,'" said Mandelbaum.
If I'm on the streetcar when it gets held up, what happens?
Though the KC Streetcar Authority doesn't have one yet, it is working on a game plan if an extended interruption of service happens.
"Is there anything that we could do to provide them transportation so as to not incur cost for them since it's something that would be streetcar related?" asked Mandelbaum
With all of this hassle, why have parking along the route at all?
The KC Streetcar Authority says it is a compromise with the Kansas City community.
"This was a direct relation to what we heard from the community," said Mandelbaum. "When given the option to eliminate parking on the route or to keep it, most of the properties and community members wanted to keep it."
When can we ride?
Not until after the Big 12 Tournament. The KC Streetcar Authority says late April or early May is the projected start.
The third streetcar finished its first test on the route Friday, and all of the cars and operators need to complete training.
Additionally, the KC Streetcar Authority wants it to be operational for at least a week under normal traffic conditions before a large scale event.
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Brian Abel can be reached at brian.abel@kshb.com.
