Politics
Deadline Approaching for Illinois Lawmakers to Secure Transit Funding and Reform Bill
We’re just days away from the end of the Illinois General Assembly’s spring session on May 31. Among the many thorny issues lawmakers are tackling is the future of Chicago-area public transit.
CTA, Metra and Pace are facing a $770 million hole in their budget next year and are urging the Illinois General Assembly to pass a public transportation funding and reform bill to avoid service cuts and major layoffs at each agency.
“In order to realize the savings of 20%, you’d have to cut service by up to 40%,” said Orlando Rojas, a Metra train conductor and legislative representative at Sheet Metal Air Rail Transportation (SMART) Union Local 653. “There’s certain fixed costs that the transit agencies have. Whether it’s fully funded or not, they’re obligated to meet those costs. So where they have the most room is in service cuts, unfortunately, and that’s the actual service that we provide. Now you’re talking a 40% reduction. Obviously, the people that I work with are concerned about cuts.”
Some advocates have called for merging all public transportation service boards into one consolidated new entity known as the Metropolitan Mobility Authority (MMA).
“We really would like to see the region take a rider-centered proposal where we have different functions that are handled at a regional level,” said Audrey Wennink, a senior director for the Metropolitan Planning Council who supports the MMA. “For example, if we had all fare policy handled at the regional level so that riders could transfer between different systems and not have to pay two fares. If we had all service planning handled at the regional level, so that connections could be timed well. So we really think there’s a lot of opportunity to have everything integrated in a way that it makes it really easy and appealing for riders to travel around the region using transit and leave their car behind.”
Lawmakers have been clear that they aren’t coming through with any more money unless they see reforms to how the agencies are run. And what those reforms look like, as well as where the money will come from, has yet to be resolved.
