Chicago Will Be Home to Federally Funded Rapid Bus Routes

By Margaret Lyons in News on Apr 29, 2008 7:44PM

The City of Chicago announced today that we're getting a $153 million government grant to try traffic-busting transit plans. On the to-do list? A special "bus rapid transit" subsystem and pricier downtown parking to make public transportation more attractive and driving drastically less so. From the USDOT press release:

[U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E.] Peters explained the federal funds will be used to support Chicago’s creation of four pilot routes of a new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) network. The new BRT routes will have their own dedicated lanes and the buses will be equipped with technology to help speed them through traffic with priority right of way at busy signalized intersections. In addition, the CTA will be able to purchase new and cleaner hybrid engine vehicles, she said.

Where exactly those dedicated lanes will be is still TBD, buy Mayor Daley said at a press conference this morning that his goal is to have 100 miles of bus lanes in the city. Someday. Some bus stops will be equipped with kiosks where riders could pay before getting on the bus, which would allow for front and rear boarding, and the snazzy new routes will have fewer stops to maximize efficiency. [S-T, ABC 7, Department of Transportation release, Trib, photo by efroten]