<p>After months of debate, Illinois legislators released a transit reform proposal that renames the Regional Transportation Authority, establishes a consolidated police force and creates a universal fare system for the Chicago area’s mass transit agencies.</p><p>But a gaping hole in the plan still remains. The bill does not address revenue options to pay for it.</p><p>The proposed changes come as the RTA system faces a $770 million budget shortfall. Legislators in Springfield have seized the moment to rehab the region’s ailing transit agencies using the mantra “no funding without reform.”</p><p>Under the latest proposal, the RTA would be rebranded as the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA) and assume greater responsibility coordinating rides and fares between Metra, Pace and the Chicago Transit Authority. To address security concerns on mass transit, the bill calls for the Cook County Sheriff to establish a task force in cooperation with the Chicago Police Department, METRA Police, Illinois State Police and other sheriff’s offices in the service area.</p><p>“People should be able to get on a bus, a train, transit of any sort and not have to worry about which ticket they have, and the transfers they may need to make,” Gov. JB Pritzker said at an unrelated news conference Wednesday. “They should just be able to get on and go where they want to go and that has not been happening with the governance we’ve had up until now.”</p><p>The bill would also allow the mayor, Cook County Board President and governor to each appoint five members to the NITA board. The county board chairs of DuPage, Will, Kane, Lake and McHenry would also get to each make one appointment to the 20-member board.</p><p>“The CTA has obviously made some missteps,” Kate Lowe, a professor with the University of Illinois Chicago’s Department of Urban Planning and Policy, told the Sun-Times. “But I think [the board structure is] an over correction, and I think Chicago has been uniquely challenged in Illinois relative to other agencies.”</p><p>Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chicago’s transit agencies were required to provide 50% of the system’s operating expenses through fare collections, but a massive decline in ridership following the pandemic exposed limitations to this model.</p><p>"This bill still doesn’t address funding. That is always going to be my major concern… where is funding," Lowe said. "Everyone has made a choice to put [funding and reform] as kind of equivalent conversations when they’re not. Funding first, then reform is the opposite of what legislators are saying."</p><p>The bill still faces an uncertain future at the statehouse, with their spring legislative session scheduled to end on May 31.</p><p>“While we are making significant progress, conversations among colleagues, advocates, our workers and everyday riders are ongoing as we work to ensure that we provide viable, long-term solutions that will serve our region for decades — not just meet next year’s needs or temporarily fill a budget gap,” said State Sen. Ram Villivalam, D-Chicago, who has been a key negotiator on the issue.</p>
Politics
via Chicago Sun-Times – Politics https://ift.tt/B2p0A18
May 28, 2025 at 07:11PM
Illinois Delivered 