Latest news with #Chicago
Washington Post
7 minutes ago
- Business
- Washington Post
Chicago risks severe cuts to transit. Its poorest suburbs could be hit even harder
HARVEY, Ill. — Winfred Wilson was struggling to make ends meet on less than $700 a month, so he moved in with his daughter, gave up his car and started relying exclusively on public transit to take him wherever he needed to go across Chicago's southern suburbs . As he waited for a bus connection in his hometown of Harvey on a recent trip to the grocery store, Wilson waved at familiar travelers who regularly pass through the key transportation hub serving one of the region's poorest areas. Many, he said, encounter little resistance from drivers when they board without paying.
The Independent
18 minutes ago
- Business
- The Independent
Chicago risks severe cuts to transit. Its poorest suburbs could be hit even harder
Winfred Wilson was struggling to make ends meet on less than $700 a month, so he moved in with his daughter, gave up his car and started relying exclusively on public transit to take him wherever he needed to go across Chicago 's southern suburbs. As he waited for a bus connection in his hometown of Harvey on a recent trip to the grocery store, Wilson waved at familiar travelers who regularly pass through the key transportation hub serving one of the region's poorest areas. Many, he said, encounter little resistance from drivers when they board without paying. ' People in affluent neighborhoods, they have cars and personal transportation, but they don't want to get caught up in the rush hour,' so they use transit, Wilson said. 'We couldn't live without it.' Public transit agencies across the U.S. have been grappling with a fiscal cliff spurred by declining ridership and the impending sunset of federal COVID-19 relief funding. The Chicago area faces particularly bleak service cuts that officials warn could be set in motion as early as Saturday if Illinois legislators adjourn without plugging a $770 million hole in the transportation budget. The big city's commuters would be hit hard, with the Chicago Transit Authority poised to shut down four of eight elevated train lines and 74 of 127 bus routes under the worst-case scenario. But perhaps no place illustrates the range of potential outcomes more vividly than Harvey, whose mayor, Christopher Clark — a lifelong resident — says was once 'the metropolis of the Southland' before plants and factories closed and disinvestment took hold. Suburb at a crossroads Already the busiest station for PACE, the region's suburban bus system that also serves paratransit customers, Harvey recently won state and federal grant money for a state-of-the-art facility that would put the buses under the same roof as the Metra commuter rail stop a block away. Plans eventually call for a high-speed bus line connecting the Harvey station to the Red Line L train that cuts through the downtown Chicago Loop. Such an upgrade could be an economic boon for Harvey, where now-vacant businesses are found on almost every downtown block and where more than 1 in 4 residents live below the poverty line. But even if the new station is built, ending or severely cutting the buses and trains that pass through could send the city reeling in the opposite direction. 'It would be chaos for us in the suburbs,' said Cheyane Felton, after finishing her shift at a coffee stand in the basement of Harvey's City Hall. 'It would cut us off.' Without additional state funding, PACE could be forced to halt buses in Harvey and elsewhere on weekends and after 8 p.m. on weekdays, executive director Melinda Metzger said. 'The downside for this is disastrous,' she said in an interview at the Harvey stop. 'You would be cutting back your service by at least 40%, not giving people viable rides. They might get to work, but they might have a late-night shift and can't get home, so ridership also would plummet to match the service cuts.' Transit's nationwide funding crunch Major public transportation agencies across the country have had varying degrees of success lobbying their legislatures for more support with the federal emergency funding set to expire at the end of the year. Perhaps no place mirrors Chicago's current situation more than Philadelphia, which faces a $213 million transportation budget deficit next year, even after Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro authorized redirecting some of the state's highway money to mass transit. Absent more funding, riders could see a 20% spike in fares, a 9 p.m. curfew, and the elimination of 50 bus routes and five of eight regional rail lines, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority has said. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bailout package in 2023 to help fund New York City's subway and buses. She also opened a major new source of transit revenue by implementing congestion pricing for drivers in Manhattan, but it remains to be seen whether the new tolls will survive threats from President Donald Trump's administration to shut them down. Boston, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and numerous other transit-dependent cities have also been scrambling to avert major cuts. A moving deadline? 'No funding without reform' has been a common mantra among Illinois legislators working to hash out a solution for Chicago's transit crisis before leaving Springfield on Saturday at the end of their regular session. Technically, the money doesn't run out until the end of the year, and there will likely be a veto session that could provide another shot at an 11th-hour rescue. But transportation officials say they'll have to start laying out the specific cuts next week if the funding doesn't come through by then. 'It's not a light switch we can just turn on or off," said Leanne Redden, executive director of the Regional Transportation Authority, which oversees planning and funding for the area's transit agencies. "Even if we find funding at a future point, it's a slow process to kind of unwind the unwinding.' So far, there have been no major breakthroughs on funding, although a compromise surfaced this week to create a new umbrella organization that, among other things, would ensure the various agencies work in unison rather than as competitors for the same customers. 'They should just be able to get on and go where they want to go, and that has not been happening with the governance that we've had up to now,' Gov. J.B. Pritzker said. Chicago's transit agencies argue they're more efficient than their peers in other states and get by with a smaller portion of state funding. Clark, the Harvey mayor, said he still envisions his community benefitting from the economic promise of a new transit facility rather than enduring disappointment once again. 'I guess some people want me to paint a picture that it's a nuclear Armageddon or something like that,' he said. 'I can't paint that picture because I have to remain ever hopeful that we will get what we need to get in due time. Government is a long game.'
Associated Press
20 minutes ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Chicago risks severe cuts to transit. Its poorest suburbs could be hit even harder
HARVEY, Ill. (AP) — Winfred Wilson was struggling to make ends meet on less than $700 a month, so he moved in with his daughter, gave up his car and started relying exclusively on public transit to take him wherever he needed to go across Chicago's southern suburbs. As he waited for a bus connection in his hometown of Harvey on a recent trip to the grocery store, Wilson waved at familiar travelers who regularly pass through the key transportation hub serving one of the region's poorest areas. Many, he said, encounter little resistance from drivers when they board without paying. 'People in affluent neighborhoods, they have cars and personal transportation, but they don't want to get caught up in the rush hour,' so they use transit, Wilson said. 'We couldn't live without it.' Public transit agencies across the U.S. have been grappling with a fiscal cliff spurred by declining ridership and the impending sunset of federal COVID-19 relief funding. The Chicago area faces particularly bleak service cuts that officials warn could be set in motion as early as Saturday if Illinois legislators adjourn without plugging a $770 million hole in the transportation budget. The big city's commuters would be hit hard, with the Chicago Transit Authority poised to shut down four of eight elevated train lines and 74 of 127 bus routes under the worst-case scenario. But perhaps no place illustrates the range of potential outcomes more vividly than Harvey, whose mayor, Christopher Clark — a lifelong resident — says was once 'the metropolis of the Southland' before plants and factories closed and disinvestment took hold. Suburb at a crossroads Already the busiest station for PACE, the region's suburban bus system that also serves paratransit customers, Harvey recently won state and federal grant money for a state-of-the-art facility that would put the buses under the same roof as the Metra commuter rail stop a block away. Plans eventually call for a high-speed bus line connecting the Harvey station to the Red Line L train that cuts through the downtown Chicago Loop. Such an upgrade could be an economic boon for Harvey, where now-vacant businesses are found on almost every downtown block and where more than 1 in 4 residents live below the poverty line. But even if the new station is built, ending or severely cutting the buses and trains that pass through could send the city reeling in the opposite direction. 'It would be chaos for us in the suburbs,' said Cheyane Felton, after finishing her shift at a coffee stand in the basement of Harvey's City Hall. 'It would cut us off.' Without additional state funding, PACE could be forced to halt buses in Harvey and elsewhere on weekends and after 8 p.m. on weekdays, executive director Melinda Metzger said. 'The downside for this is disastrous,' she said in an interview at the Harvey stop. 'You would be cutting back your service by at least 40%, not giving people viable rides. They might get to work, but they might have a late-night shift and can't get home, so ridership also would plummet to match the service cuts.' Transit's nationwide funding crunch Major public transportation agencies across the country have had varying degrees of success lobbying their legislatures for more support with the federal emergency funding set to expire at the end of the year. Perhaps no place mirrors Chicago's current situation more than Philadelphia, which faces a $213 million transportation budget deficit next year, even after Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro authorized redirecting some of the state's highway money to mass transit. Absent more funding, riders could see a 20% spike in fares, a 9 p.m. curfew, and the elimination of 50 bus routes and five of eight regional rail lines, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority has said. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bailout package in 2023 to help fund New York City's subway and buses. She also opened a major new source of transit revenue by implementing congestion pricing for drivers in Manhattan, but it remains to be seen whether the new tolls will survive threats from President Donald Trump's administration to shut them down. Boston, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and numerous other transit-dependent cities have also been scrambling to avert major cuts. A moving deadline? 'No funding without reform' has been a common mantra among Illinois legislators working to hash out a solution for Chicago's transit crisis before leaving Springfield on Saturday at the end of their regular session. Technically, the money doesn't run out until the end of the year, and there will likely be a veto session that could provide another shot at an 11th-hour rescue. But transportation officials say they'll have to start laying out the specific cuts next week if the funding doesn't come through by then. 'It's not a light switch we can just turn on or off,' said Leanne Redden, executive director of the Regional Transportation Authority, which oversees planning and funding for the area's transit agencies. 'Even if we find funding at a future point, it's a slow process to kind of unwind the unwinding.' So far, there have been no major breakthroughs on funding, although a compromise surfaced this week to create a new umbrella organization that, among other things, would ensure the various agencies work in unison rather than as competitors for the same customers. 'They should just be able to get on and go where they want to go, and that has not been happening with the governance that we've had up to now,' Gov. J.B. Pritzker said. Chicago's transit agencies argue they're more efficient than their peers in other states and get by with a smaller portion of state funding. Clark, the Harvey mayor, said he still envisions his community benefitting from the economic promise of a new transit facility rather than enduring disappointment once again. 'I guess some people want me to paint a picture that it's a nuclear Armageddon or something like that,' he said. 'I can't paint that picture because I have to remain ever hopeful that we will get what we need to get in due time. Government is a long game.'
CBS News
43 minutes ago
- General
- CBS News
City seeks to buy old elevated railway in Chicago's Sauganash area, turn it into multi-use trail
City of Chicago seeks to buy old railway in Sauganash area, turn it into official trail City of Chicago seeks to buy old railway in Sauganash area, turn it into official trail City of Chicago seeks to buy old railway in Sauganash area, turn it into official trail There could soon be a new way to enjoy nature and explore the Sauganash area on the Northwest Side. The City of Chicago is trying to buy some old elevated railroad tracks and create a multi-use trail similar to the 606. The Weber Spur, which runs through LaBagh Woods, is already used as a nature path. "There's beavers, muskrat, owls, many deer," said Alan Whitney. For the last 15 years, Whitney has come out to the tranquil Weber Spur trail to escape the city. "This is the most important place to me besides my own home," he said. "It actually connects all the way to the lakefront trails." The trail was a Union Pacific Railroad line from 1890 until the early 2000s, when it was removed. Now, the Chicago Department of Transportation is trying to make it into a multi-use path dependent on federal funding. It would run from Devon Avenue south to Sunnyside Avenue near the Kennedy Expressway, and would connect to other trails like Sauganash and North Branch. For Tom Estka and his Thursday night running crew that uses the trail, that is a win. "Without a doubt," he said. Sylvia Launer would also appreciate the connections and the smooth ride — rather than gravel. "I feel like a little hesitant," Launer said. "I am older, and I like a paved path." The Chicago Department of Transportation said the 1.7-mile trail is owned by Union Pacific, and the city is currently in talks about buying it. If they do so, they expect construction to start in 2029. The project is still in the very beginning stages and would cost $70 million. There is no plan on what designs will look like yet. But for the people who use the trail daily, such as Estka, there is some concern that such a project could take away the nature. "I think it would a little bit, but it would be more accessible for everybody," he said. As for Whitney, that is exactly the reason he does not want anyone to touch his oasis. "I wouldn't want them to change the beautiful things that I love about it, which is the little bit of wildness, and some of the historic elements of this project," he said. Union Pacific confirmed that it has been in discussions with the city about the possible sale of the railroad spur — officially known as the Weber Industrial Lead — but no agreement has been reached. Union Pacific also said people should not be using the trail now. "We want to remind people this is private railroad property and it is both illegal and unsafe to trespass," the railroad said in a statement. Safety concerns on the path were the subject of a CBS News Chicago story in October 2003. Meanwhile, Ald. Samantha Nugent (39th) said she hoped the plan to develop the Weber Spur into an official trail would succeed: "The development of the Weber Spur path would improve public health, encourage more residents to walk and bike, and strengthen our local businesses. There is still a lot of work to be done, but I am hopeful we will continue to make progress towards turning the vision for this community resource into a reality." The Bloomingdale Trail at the 606 is Chicago's best-known trail that was similarly built on an old elevated railroad line. It opened in 2015, and runs above Bloomingdale Avenue from Ashland Avenue in Bucktown on the east to Ridgeway Avenue in Humboldt Park on the west. Plans were also announced in 2022 to convert a 1.85-mile abandoned railway corridor between 58th and 59th streets in the Englewood neighborhood into a multi-use path called the Englewood Nature Trail. The High Line on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City, which opened in 2009, and the Coulée verte René-Dumont in the Bastille District of Paris' 12th arrondissement, which dates back to 1993, are also famous examples of trails or parks developed on old elevated railroad lines.
Washington Post
an hour ago
- General
- Washington Post
Cardoso scores career-high 23 points as Sky beat Wings 97-92
CHICAGO — Kamilla Cardoso scored a career-high 23 points and Courtney Vandersloot set franchise records for points and field goals as the Chicago Sky beat the Dallas Wings 97-92 on Thursday night. Arike Ogunbowale scored a season-high 37 points for the Wings and hit a 3-pointer that gave Dallas a 92-91 lead with 2:11 remaining. But Ogunbowale went 0 for 3 the rest of the way and the Sky closed with a 6-0 run.
