The Friday Flashback: Bus Transfers

By Chuck Sudo in Miscellaneous on Nov 7, 2008 2:10PM

The CTA's "Chicago Card" and standard fare cards have given riders loads of grief, with everything from incorrect balances to unreadable cards. Maybe we should go back to transfers.

This is how we used to roll Old School on the "Green Limousine." Imagine having to fish out a crumpled paper transfer (or change, if you were buying one) from your pocket at a packed bus stop, only to have the driver fish out a hole punch from his pocket or holster and mark out when the damn thing expires. This is another reason we gravitated toward bicycles at a young age.

CTA used to have Sunday "Supertransfers." For $1.75 — less than the cost of a one-way ride on a bus today — you could travel throughout the city with a single transfer ticket on a Sunday. It was great for families having a Sunday on the town on a budget, seniors and kids slumming at the Brickyard or Harlem Irving Plaza. If they were truly concerned with good PR, maybe CTA should consider bringing that back.