photo by: Sylas May/Journal-World

A bus makes a turn near the KU campus on Wednesday, March 4, 2026.

Lawrence Transit is proposing changes to several of its bus routes later this year, including two changes that would let riders stop at the new Dillons grocery store on the University of Kansas’ West Campus.

The potential route changes were announced Wednesday in a news release from Lawrence Transit, and you can tell the city how you feel about them in a survey that’s now online at the Lawrence Listens website.

In the survey, available at lawrenceks.gov/listens/surveys, you can leave written comments about each of the proposed route changes. There are also questions about how often you use the bus, which routes you use, and how safe you feel on the bus and at bus stops. The survey will remain open until April 3, and Lawrence Transit plans to make a final decision and implement the new routes by Aug. 1.

If you’d prefer to share your opinions in person, transit staff will be doing “on-route surveys” with people who ride Route 9, the route that would change most significantly. Staff will also be interacting with riders in person at the downtown bus stop near Seventh and Vermont streets and Central Station at 2315 Bob Billings Parkway; for more information on when they’ll be there, visit lawrencetransit.org/projects/route-changes.

There will also be a public hearing on KU bus routes at 2 p.m. March 10 in the Jayhawk Room on Level 5 of the Kansas Union.

Here’s a closer look at the potential changes, with maps of the current routes and the new proposals:

Route 9:

Right now: This route serves the southwest corner of Lawrence, with stops along 31st Street, Lawrence Avenue and Clinton Parkway. It stops near the Aldi and Target stores in the south Iowa Street area, and other sites on the route include Holcom Park, the Hy-Vee grocery store at 3504 Clinton Parkway and a number of apartment complexes near Clinton and Wakarusa. At its eastern end, the route connects with Route 7, which continues on to destinations in eastern Lawrence and downtown.

The proposed changes: Instead of extending west, this route would go north to connect with Central Station. It would also pass by the new Dillons store on KU’s West Campus. It would no longer go farther west than Lawrence Avenue, but other bus routes accessible from Central Station would still stop at the Hy-Vee (Route 5) or the apartment complexes on the far west side (Route 12).

Route 30:

Right now: This route connects several apartment complexes on Bob Billings Parkway, including Meadowbrook Apartments, with the University of Kansas campus. Its stops on campus include the Jayhawker Towers student housing complex, the KU engineering building and the academic buildings on Jayhawk Boulevard, and it continues from there to Route 36, which serves parts of Ninth and Sixth streets.

The proposed changes: While the part on KU’s campus would look much the same, the route would add an interline to the west to extend service to another apartment complex, Orchard Corners near Bob Billings and Kasold.

Route 38:

Right now: This route connects South Iowa Street to the KU campus. Its southernmost stop is at The Landing apartments, 2511 W. 31st St., and it also stops near the intersections of 31st and Iowa, 27th and Iowa and a few apartment complexes just off of Iowa Street before heading north to campus. There, it runs past the dorms on Daisy Hill and the academic buildings on Jayhawk Boulevard and becomes Route 34, which runs past the football stadium and on to Sixth Street.

The proposed changes: A bulge would be added in the middle of the route to accommodate a new stop at the Dillons grocery store on the West Campus, and some of the stops at KU would change. In particular, the Daisy Hill stops would no longer be included.

Route 42:

Right now: This route is one of the KU campus’ “circulator” routes. It currently connects West Campus to the southern parts of the main campus, with stops near Stouffer Place Apartments, Downs Hall and the student recreation and health centers. From there it goes north to the academic buildings on Sunnyside Avenue and Jayhawk Boulevard.

The proposed changes: The city notes in its news release that this change would be dependent on KU implementing a new “park and ride” proposal. The West Campus part of Route 42 would be entirely removed, and the route would now include the Daisy Hill dorms. A new park and ride route, Route 41, would then be added to connect Jayhawk Boulevard and Daisy Hill with the West Campus.

A few minor changes are proposed to the timing of other routes, but they wouldn’t change where the routes stop.