(Courtesy of Flix)
The looming closure of Chicago’s intercity bus terminal — which bus providers Thursday signaled is just weeks away — could cut off abortion access for out-of-state residents increasingly traveling to Illinois for care, state lawmakers said.
Democratic legislators sounded the alarm in a letter Thursday to Mayor Brandon Johnson and urged him to “act swiftly.”
“Many patients traveling to our city to access the legal health care they’ve been denied at home have struggled to find the resources to get here, and that often means relying on the least expensive means of transportation,” the letter reads. “Eliminating bus travel as an economical option would be devastating to them.”
The letter is signed by members of an Illinois House group dedicated to developing state policies to protect and expand reproductive care following the 2022 Dobbs decision from the U.S. Supreme Court that felled the right to an abortion previously secured by Roe v. Wade.
It’s the latest distress signal sounded over the future of a safe major bus stop in Chicago, though both Greyhound and the Johnson administration sought to quell anxiety by saying they’re actively searching for a fix.
A spokesperson from Flix North America — which operates Greyhound and FlixBus — told WTTW News in a statement the bus carriers are “preparing to end operations at the Harrison Street bus terminal in the coming weeks to allow for the necessary site clean-out before the lease expiration date.”
The statement went on to say the company is “committed to finalizing an immediate solution for the benefit of Chicago residents.”
Critics say losing the bus terminal at Harrison Street would lead to chaos and service cuts that harm low-income households, and would be a pox on Chicago, which has long been recognized as one of the nation’s leading transportation hubs.
“We are actively continuing to work with all relevant local stakeholders to finalize plans for continued operations in Chicago beyond that point,” the Flix statement said. “Intercity buses provide affordable and reliable long-distance transportation and are a vital source of connectivity for many Chicagoans and millions of people in the U.S., including lower-income individuals, college students, seniors on fixed incomes, military personnel, people with disabilities, and rural residents.”
When the transportation company FlixBus in 2021 bought the Greyhound bus network, it did not also buy the West Loop terminal.
The bus company’s lease to operate from the terminal is up next month, and Greyhound’s CEO told the Chicago Sun-Times in August that finding an alternative was “urgent” or bus service could be disrupted as soon as mid-September.
The private equity company that acquired the terminal is trying to sell it.
Greyhound’s parent company could solve the issue by buying the property, Chicago’s Chief Operating Officer John Roberson said Thursday.
“While we have looked at several different options, it should be noted that Greyhound has an option to renew its lease at its current Harrison Street location under the same terms and conditions that it currently operates under,” Roberson said.
The statement from Flix North America did not answer a question as to whether it is considering buying the terminal.
A May report from DePaul’s Chaddick Institute slammed both the city and the state for failing to protect Illinois’ bus network, including the potential shuttering of the intercity bus terminal used by Greyhound, a service that primarily serves lower-income travelers.
Passenger rail service Amtrak last month sounded its own alarm over plans by the Johnson administration to make Amtrak’s Union Station train station the main bus stop, citing concerns of overcrowding, passenger safety and exacerbated traffic jams on busy surrounding city streets.
Roberson indicated in an emailed statement that the Johnson administration is in talks with Greyhound, Amtrak and other stakeholders to “find a viable solution for intercity bus services and its passengers in downtown Chicago.”
He called “ongoing” conversations with Amtrak productive and said Amtrak “has agreed to work in partnership to solve Greyhound’s problem of providing a clean and safe terminal facility for intercity bus passengers” as the city and others involved seek a “long-term comprehensive solution.”
Roberson did not directly respond to a WTTW News question about the concerns posed by state legislators and abortion providers about the impact the travel turmoil could pose to patients seeking care in Illinois, where all reproductive health procedures and care are protected by law.
According to figures Planned Parenthood of Illinois made public in June, 25% of its patients come from out-of-state, a five-fold increase from before the Dobbs decision.
Support organizations have fundraised to help those seeking health care in Illinois travel to the state. In their letter to Johnson, the Democratic legislators — state Reps. Kelly Cassidy, Dagmara Avelar, Mary Beth Canty, Terra Costa Howard, Margaret Croke, Kim Du Buclet, Lillian Jimenez, Gregg Johnson, Kevin Olickal, Anna Moeller and Ann Williams — said that those organizations are “struggling to maintain sufficient funds to provide support to everyone who needs it.”
The letter goes on to say eliminating the option of lower-cost bus service would further hurt the ability to meet financially strapped patients’ needs.
In a joint statement, a coalition of abortion rights groups and health care providers said, “The Chicago Greyhound station is crucial for access to abortion in Chicago. Pregnant people from other parts of Illinois and from abortion-restricted states all across the country use Greyhound to reach Chicago for care.”
The coalition urged Chicago and Greyhound to preserve “this critical mode of transportation to Chicago for abortion seekers.”
Those signing onto the statement include the Chicago Abortion Fund; Family Planning Associates; Dr. Jonah Fleisher, abortion provider and Complex Abortion Regional Line for Access (CARLA) co-director; Illinois Choice Action Team; Dr. Laura Laursen, abortion provider and CARLA co-director; Personal PAC; and Planned Parenthood Illinois Action.
Contact Amanda Vinicky: @AmandaVinicky | [email protected]
