The Future of the System

It is important for us to consider not only the first project to be implemented, but also the potential for any future expansion in an effort to create a city-wide transportation use of the mode. While there are really an infinite number of possibilities, as every major street presents an opportunity, a few non-street running opportunities present themselves for consideration.

The red lines identify most of these non-street running options for construction after the starter line is completed. An interesting fact to note is that every suburb of the Wichita area has a rail service running through it. Goddard, Maize and Colwich, Valley Center, Park City, Kechi, Bel Aire, Andover, Derby and Mulvane, and Haysville could all potentially have service through their centers, creating redevelopment opportunities for these communities.

Most of the right-of-ways outlined are railroads, either active or abandoned. The southern ROW is an abandoned railroad line that runs along the west bank of the river before turning south and joining with an active rail line through Haysville. The Valley Center to Mulvane ROW is the most active railway in the area and was recently grade separated through much of downtown. Another option through the central city is on the western side of downtown where another abandoned ROW sits. The Kechi and Bel Aire branches are both active, yet somewhat quieter railways. However, the line extending north from the starter line in northeast Wichita is a cleared corridor beneath high-capacity electrical transmission lines and could form a connection between the line and Bel Aire.

I am not speaking to the engineering feasability of the any of these options. Some, like the southern ROW would be more straightforward than others, such as trying to fit transit service on the central rail corridor, but the possibilities should be explored.

If the proper planning is put in place, we could have a truely regional system in a few decades. Just for dreaming's sake, I put together a route map of what the city system could look like. I'm using the two west side options (Goddard and Colwich), two south side options (Haysville and Mulvane), the two northern most options (Valley Center and Kechi), and the branch underneath the high-capacity electric lines in the northeast (Bel Aire), in addition to the eastern branch (Andover).

The 235/Kellogg Issue

The interchange between west Kellogg and I-235 next to the big ditch needs to be rebuilt. There is no argument about that. The area is extremely dangerous for any driver, whether or not he is changing highways or in the left-most through lane. The bridge over the Big Ditch was recently expanded to allow three lanes of traffic in each direction on Kellogg at the expense of any worthwhile shoulder space. The loop from eastbound Kellogg to northbound 235 is so sharp drivers have to slow down to a speed where they cannot merge with through and exiting traffic above, leading to backups that spread to the freeway below, causing extremely dangerous conditions where cars sit next to others traveling 60 mph.

The relevance to a light-rail system for Wichita is that the right-of-way in question travels through the southern portion of the intersection. It is what causes the EB 54 to NB 235 loop to be so oddly shaped. The Kansas Department of Transportation and Wichita have begun the process of planning to replace the intersection. The problem is that no where in the current plan is there a replacement for the right-of-way. Currently, the KDOT plans have a fully directional interchange with a braided ramp for access to West St. This requires ramps and bridges to be built directly in the path of the current rail right-of-way.

However, some creative routing on the parts of the planners and a couple of longer bridges then planned allow for the continued existence of the corridor through the intersection.

The following image is taken from the website created for the study of the reconstruction of the interchange http://www.235kelloggcentral.com/.

I added the blue line to demonstrate how the rail ROW could be routed through the intersection. Traveling from west-to-east the rail would enter from the ROW south of Kellogg. After passing the Stratford House Inn, the line would angle northward and travel over or under (the best solution should be determined by KDOT) the exiting ramp from Kellogg. It would then turn eastward to travel next to the eastbound lanes of Kellogg underneath the ramps and mainline bridge of I-235. At the exit for West Street from EB Kellogg, the line would angle southeast and parallel the car exit underneath the entrance ramp to EB Kellogg. At this point, the line would have returned to the right-of-way and could continue eastbound.

Constructing this right-of-way as the interchange is built would add limited extra expense to the project. The exit ramp from EB Kellogg would require a new bridge, the I-235 and entrance ramp to EB Kellogg would have to extend their bridges, and supports for the taller bridges would have to be arranged to not interfere with the ROW. Yes, these adjustments would cost more, but in the end it would be cheaper than trying to fit the line through after it is built.

The Transit Network

The effects of a transit line go beyond the properties immediately surrounding the rails and stations. Any effective high-capacity line has substantial connections to other forms of transit which serve the neighborhoods around the stations. As the light-rail corridor would not be constructed for some time, it is important to consider the future plans for the city from a public transit stand point and consider what adding a light-rail line might do to these.

The following map is taken from the 1999 Update to the Wichita-Sedgwick County 2030 Transportation Plan. It can be found here.

It's exciting to see that the rail line fits into the plans for cities transportation aspirations. The outer city circulator routes could easily be adjusted to stem from the rail system instead of the transfer points the planning commission identified. The express bus service running from the Park and Rides at the eastern and western edges of the city could be diverted onto the train system by placing those facilities near the ends of the line. The two transportation hubs at Towne West Square and Wichita State would be centered around the light-rail system making them significant nodes of activities in their respective quadrant of the city.

Finally, the line could have the potential to replace bus lines, or at least redraw them. For example, having the East Central bus line run the distance between Wesley hospital and the downtown terminal would be redundant to the right-of-way two blocks to the north. Any person traveling downtown could walk to their destination from the LRT station just as easy as the bus station and most of the connecting west side routes would intersect the system west of downtown and thereby closer to the destination. The potential issue would be connections to the south, in which case, taking the train might be less convenient due to additional transfers. Obviously, any termination of service would be well studied before being enacted but the possibility exists to move corridor services to the transit line.

The purpose of producing these plans is to have a framework on which to build the transportation future of the city. When a sustainable technology so easily fits into the city's plans, expands the potential ridership by more effectively covering a larger populace and has the opportunity to substantially decrease the time required to use transit, it should be heavily considered.