Results tagged “transit”

As expected, the Regional Transportation Authority board agreed this week to slash public funding for Chicago-area transit services by $67 million over the next six months. The nine board members in attendance voted unanimously for the cuts, in the hopes that they will bring the transit agencies' growing budget deficits in line with lower tax revenues.

In a refrain which is growing tiresome yet still just as worrisome, it seems the CTA is once again threatening service cuts ahead of an RTA vote. The vote, happening Thursday, would cut $61 million worth of services to make up for a drop in sales-tax revenue. If approved, overall cuts would breakdown to $35 million for the CTA, $19 million for Metra, and $7 million for PACE. CTA President Richard Rodriguez has warned that cuts would result in about a five percent reduction in service for every $10 million lost. There's no indication which specific services the CTA would be cut, but officials have said whole bus routes could be lost in addition to overall reduction in service. PACE will look to reduce services on routes with low ridership, focusing on late nights, early mornings, and weekends. As for Metra, officials for that agency seemed to be downright sunny in comparison, saying the cuts wouldn't result in lost services as the agency did not fill some vacant job posts and have held tight on spending. [Tribune]

The Chicago Transit Authority restored Yellow Line service Saturday after switch problems at the Howard Street station. Service was suspended for less than two hours early Saturday morning as crews worked to repair the problem. The halted service caused delays on the Red and Purple lines shared at the station, according to the CTA. The Yellow line shuttles passengers between two stops: Howard and north suburban Skokie. [S-T]

If you live near a Metra stop within the city and work downtown, the Sun-Times has a new money-saving suggestion for you: take the Metra. With more than 70 stops within city limits, the commuter train system could offer a cheaper alternative for transit riders, but what, specifically, are the savings?

The mayor plans to spend $260 million on education, for after-school programs and teacher recruitment and training, as well as expanding Head Start for some 10,000 children. Daley also plans to rebuild 43 miles of pothole-filled arterial streets, while upgrading the fleet of police cars, including the installation of more cameras and finance more police overtime. The mayor also plans to spend about $144 million to convert existing condominum stock into affordable rentals, and $31 million to rehabilitate the Altgeld Gardens and Phillip Murray Homes on the South Side. “There are many opportunities to create jobs and protect people in their quality of life,” Daley said.

Earlier this week, we mentioned how the clock was ticking on the state of Illinois to claim its allotted stimulus cash for transit projects. Well, someone finally answered the bell. Yesterday the Chicago Transit Authority received $241 million from the federal stimulus package for capital projects. Today the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning allowed the CTA to begin working on transit projects, according to the Chi-Town Daily News. Metra will receive $141 million and PACE suburban buses will receive $33 million.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has issued a heads up to his former legislative home state of Illinois, warning the state that time is running out for them to submit their transit project list in order to receive money from the recently passed stimulus bill. Said LaHood, "The law requires us to get the money out the door very quickly...we have not received a list from the state or from Chicago." Illinois is in line to receive $935 million from the stimulus package with $429 million of that designated for transit projects. As outlined in the stimulus legislation, the deadline for applying for bridge, highway, and transit funding is Tuesday, March 10.

If the Illinois State Legislature has their way, we could see a serious reduction in the free transit rides offered to seniors. If you remember, the free rides for all seniors was a stipulation that douche rocket former governor Rod Blagojevich demanded in turn for giving local transit agencies funding that would (temporarily) stave off another doomsday. With those free rides costing area transit agencies about $58 million this year in the face of huge deficits, state lawmakers are looking to scale back the rides and put a little bit more money in the agencies' pockets.

After a week of derailments and secret agent delays, Metra hopes things get back to running smoothly tomorrow. Among the derailments was the North Central Line which runs between Antioch and Chicago which was shut when a Canadian National freight train derailed early Friday morning. Officials expect the line, which carries around 5,000 passengers daily, to be back to normal tomorrow. Be sure to check Metra's Service Updates just in case.

A new Green Line station is coming to the West Loop at Morgan Street even though studies showed it would be better for a stop at Western. The station will cost between $35 and 40 million and construction will start next year with an eye on a late-2010/early-2011 open. CDOT spokesman Brian Steel defended the decision to the Chicago Journal, saying the numbers that supported a Western stop were outdated: "Since that time, the area around the Morgan station has seen big jumps in residential and commercial development...[The 2002 study] was based on 2000 census numbers. This is 2008. Clearly, the Morgan station has seen significant growth, much more than the area around Western. Another thing that led to the decision was in 2006, the CTA introduced the Pink Line service, which goes through the corridor the Morgan station will serve." Other studies are examining the feasibility of additional Green Line stations at 18th or Cermak in the South Loop and potentially Damen. [via Gapers Block]

CTA riders aren't the only ones facing an impending fare hike as PACE has announced its new fares, effective January 1, 2009. Adult fares for the bus lines will increase to $1.75, a 25-cent increase for most routes and a 50-cent increase for Metra-feeder routes. One small piece of good news: neither the Metra Plus Bus Pass or the Metra Link Up Pass will increase in price.

It looks like the CTA has passed a fare hike for 2009, but media outlets, while not saying exactly how much the hike will be, are reporting it's lower than the proposed 25-cent hike. Update: It seems the 25-cent hike will go into effect for per-ride fares, but the long term passes will have less than a 20 percent hike. Here's a rundown via Chicago Breaking News:

Starting in January, a transit card ride will cost $2, up from $1.75; a rail transit card will cost $2.25, up from $2; a rail Chicago Card will increase to $2.25 from $1.75; and a bus Chicago Card will rise to $2 from $1.75.

Continue reading "CTA Passes Lower Fare Hike"

The CTA board meeting scheduled for today has been postponed until tomorrow due to the CTA's failing to post a notice of the meeting as required by the Illinois Open Meetings Act which is in place, "to ensure that public business is conducted in public view by prohibiting secret deliberations and actions on matters that should be discussed in a public forum." Still, one day won't change the suspected outcome of the meeting: an expected 25-cent fare hike. We ran down the ins-and-outs of the new budget about a month back, but said budget is finally coming to pass.

Another victim of the new City budget seems to be the city's free trolley system. The system, a big hit among tourists (88 percent of riders are out-of-towners), was put in by Mayor Daley after a trip to San Francisco in 2000. Initially funded by a federal congestion-relief plan, the city took over payments for the trolleys in 2004. Almost a million people have ridden the trolleys in 2008. The last day of service will be January 4, 2009 and is expected to save the city about $1.7 million.

While the CTA has seen it necessary to raise fares, Metra won't be following suit in 2009. Fare hikes might be necessary in 2010 depending on whether or not the state government gives them necessary funding. Metra's on pace to carry a total of 85 million riders this year, an all-time high. Huzzah!

The CTA isn't the only transit organization looking for a 2009 fare hike; it looks as if PACE will be raising their fares by 25 cents, up to $1.75 per ride, early next year. The board meets on Wednesday to discuss it. Metra has said there are no plans for any additional fare hikes besides the 10 percent increase that's coming in February.

Have you found squishing your way onto the L train a little less difficult? If so, you may have already ridden one of the new reduced-seat "MAX" L train cars the CTA has been testing out on the Brown Line during rush hour since September 12. The number of seats on these new cars has been reduced by 12 or 14, freeing up space for an additional 20 passengers.

Mega, two-mile-long trains may be choo choo choosing Illinois in the near future, and some people aren't too thrilled about it—people who, say, have to drive across railroad crossings, or anyone who might need an ambulance that would have to cross one. A new report says that if Canadian Nation buys EJ&J's tracks, "motorists would face lengthy delays at 15 rail crossings in a dozen Chicago-area communities," and 10 communities' emergency response dispatches would have to change. Instead of having 6 trains go through every day, Frankfort would see 28; Plainfield's rail traffic could go from 18 trains per day to 42. Previously... [Trib]

Every year, 71 Chicago pedestrians are killed and 930 are seriously injured when they're hit by cars, according to the North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center. The most dangerous intersection for pedestrians is 79th and King Drive, where 13 people were hit in 2003 and 2005, the years for which information was available.

If you’ve paid your CTA fares through an Express Farecard vending machine between March until the middle of July, you might want to double-check your credit card and bank statements.

A 43-year-old man died over the weekend after being electrocuted by the third rail after he fell or was pushed onto the El tracks at the Red Line Roosevelt stop. Daniel McKenzie's death was ruled a homicide today. Three men McKenzie was apparently arguing with on the platform are in police custody, but no charges have been filed. [Trib]

Today's "learn something new every day" moment comes from a surprisingly interesting NPR story about the congestion nightmare that is Chicago's railways.

Aldermen approved a measure today to help the 49X bus be more efficient. Every little bit helps, Alderfolk!

Should the need arise, evacuating Chicago—due to a terrorism or a natural disaster, say—via mass transit could be tough, according to a new report.

The CTA will use new, seat-free cars during rush hour on the Brown Line starting this fall. The preliminary plan is to have two (out of eight) cars be seatless, so don't fret, lazies.

The CTA is building four new structures to meet increased demand for pedal-powered parking. The Midway stop on the Orange Line, the Sox-35th stop on the Red Line, and the Jefferson Park and Damen stops on the Blue Line will each be home to covered, three-walled bike ports that will house a combined total of 382 bicycles. [S-T]

Snack foods that sound like sex acts. Oh, cheese nips.

The average Chicago driver is in an accident every 7.6 years according to a new study from Allstate, which makes us the 176th safest. Out of 193. We're not the worst! We're not the worst! The safest "city" is Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where drivers are in accidents once every 14.6 years; the most dangerous driving is in DC, where drivers are in accidents every 5.4 years. Hilariously for anyone who's spent any time around New England, Massachusetts drivers were not evaluated in the study.

A new report from the RTA says the CTA isn't doing enough emergency response drills, there's "debris" everywhere, operators aren't following safety protocols, tracks are severely deteriorated, and certain signal mechanisms have fallen into "disrepair." The CTA says they're on it, mostly.

American Airlines is going to "test" in-flight internet access starting tomorrow on some flights from LA to New York, and while the testing phase is free, the airline plans to charge for access down the road, so get ready to pony up between $9.95 to $12.95 if you 1. fly American and 2. can't go a few hours without internet. [AP]