Buses that never show up and unreliable train travel times. Filling a CTA staffing shortfall. And a push for better bike safety. Those are just a few of the transit topics on the minds of voters
Transportation
Federal regulators just approved a merger between Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern, with Chicago as part of the route linking Mexico, the U.S. and Canada.
The Illinois Department of Transportation is beginning a yearslong construction project on the Kennedy Expressway. It's expected to impact the Edens and Dan Ryan expressways and cost $150 million.
Community-driven development centered around future CTA stations. That’s the idea behind a new “transit-supportive development” plan to revitalize South Side neighborhoods that are part of the proposed Red Line extension to 130th Street.
The Surface Transportation Board approved the merger of Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern. Illinois congressional members and transit agencies previously expressed opposition to the move.
Even if the federal grant is approved by Congress, Chicago would need an additional $2.4 billion to cover the total cost of the project, much of which is city officials hope will come from the federal government in future years.
Federal data show 272 hazardous materials releases involving trains in Illinois in the last decade. Predicting when and where environmental problems will manifest is difficult, but the risk is real.
Uber and Lyft are currently exempt from the so-called “common carrier” standard that applies to other forms of transportation like taxis, railroads and airlines. Some Illinois lawmakers want to change that.
The CTA started experimenting with electric buses in 2014 and plans to move to an all-electric fleet by 2040. But as the temperature drops, lithium-ion batteries that run the buses aren't as efficient and lose range.
The staffing shortfall is one of a plethora of issues plaguing the CTA in recent months. Frustrated riders and alderpeople have slammed agency leadership for late or missing buses and trains, inadequate cleaning, safety issues and not providing social services to unhoused people.
Since the 1980s, it’s been illegal for car dealerships to operate on Sundays in Illinois. WTTW News explains why.
Activists said "bad actors" lie about rideshare and delivery drivers to avoid paying. The Chicago ordinance would allow app drivers accused of misconduct to share their story and recoup income if they were found to be unfairly deactivated.
Last March, the Chicago Department of Transportation said it was planning to install about 150 accessible pedestrian signals in 2022 and 2023. So far, only nine of those signals are actually up and running – and only eight of them are new, since one of those installations was an upgrade to an older signal.
All told, the national average has climbed by more than 9% since the end of last year — the biggest increase to start a year since 2009, according to Bespoke Investment Group.
How exactly are streets organized in Chicago? WTTW News gives you a guided tour of the grid system that organizes the city’s streets and addresses.
Chicagoans are all too familiar with having to sit in traffic. A recent report shows that the average Chicago-area driver spent 155 hours in traffic last year. That's the highest number in North America and second highest in the world.
