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We’ve had the CTA’s multiple doomsday plans hammered into our heads for months now. The implications are staggering for work and for play. But what about school? Those who attend Steinmetz High School on the Northwest Side are a good example of how Springfield’s lack of funding could have a deeper impact on our social fabric.
Steinmetz students are complaining that circumlocutional routes could take them into gang territory. Longer waits for fewer buses, and more kids from various schools taking the same bus, might also mean more opportunity for fights. Another concern is reduced transit for kids who stay late for after-school programs. Talks have begun between CPD and CPS about increased police detail and added shuttles (and the city will get money for this where?). Of course, none of this means dink if the CTA gets their money. Hubie & Co. can add these situations to their negotiatory firepower; otherwise, Blago will run the risk of being exposed for hating children.
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"Springfield’s lack of funding" aside, the problems with the CTA aren't the governor's fault, they are Mayor Daley's fault. I don't think that the RTA system was ever intended to fully subsidize the CTA and there's still the issues of major neglect and mismanagement by those who oversee the CTA.
A bail out by the state may be the only way to avoid the cuts at this point, but, please, let's blame those responsible. It's amazing that Daley has managed to avoid taking any responsibility by egging on the masses to blame the state for his mess.
as a 4 corner hustla folk "hoody hoo" i am in favor of massive CTA cuts.
AJS: Yes, Daley is at fault--to a point. There was gross mismanagement by Kruesi, who Daley appointed. Istead of having more oversight, he said that Kruesi was doing a great job.
But, most mass transit in our country is subsidized by state funding. Look at the stats for yourself on the Dept of Transportation website. Compare some places--NYC, California, Mass., Maryland are all higher than us.
Did you read the RTA audit? Doesn't sound like it. If you did, you would know that Metra and Pace are both having problems, despite better management than the CTA.
Do you think only the residents of the city should pay for the mass transit that is located in it? I don't want to pay for the roads in Naperville or Champaign, but I do.
Sparky: I do know that the RTA, in general, is having problems system-wide and I do understand that some amount of state subsidy is required for the very reasons that you point out.
However, we aren't just talking about subsidies for operational expenses with the CTA. The problems, with the CTA, in particular, run much deeper than that. Perhaps Daley is responsible for 4/7s of the problem, perhaps more since he has been less than proactive over the years leading up to this situation in terms of finding a better way to fund the CTA through the means of the city or in lobbying the state.
I like what Ben Joravsky had to say about it in the Reader:
http://www.chicagoreader.com/features/stories/theworks/070928/
-A