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Chicago Tribune
3 days ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Derailed: Looming funding cuts to Philadelphia's transit system offer a lesson for Chicago
The rhythmic rumble of the 'L' isn't a death rattle — yet. But Chicago's public transit systems are set to get gut-punched early next year by a funding deficit in the hundreds of millions of dollars. If state lawmakers don't agree to allocate more money to public transit, branches on half of the CTA's 'L' lines could go silent. So many bus routes would get slashed that Chicago would have fewer of them than Kansas City. Metra trains could be spaced one or even two hours apart, depending on the day of the week. Chicagoans don't yet know which train stations would close, which bus lines would stop running or how much longer, exactly, it would take them to get to work and school each morning. That clarity isn't expected to come for months. The cuts themselves wouldn't start until January at the earliest. But 700 miles to the east, in Philadelphia, one potential version of Chicago's future is coming into focus. The city is facing up to its own massive transit deficit, caused in large part, like Chicago's, by the expiration of federal pandemic aid and exacerbated by ridership numbers that simply haven't recovered to 2019 levels. There, catastrophic transit cuts are slated to start in just weeks unless lawmakers come to a last-minute agreement on funding. The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, which runs subways, buses, trolleys, light rail and commuter rail lines throughout Philadelphia and its suburbs, is facing a more than $200 million deficit. The agency, the equivalent of the CTA, Metra and Pace all in one and the sixth-largest public transit system in the nation, expects to eliminate nearly half of its service if lawmakers don't avert the funding crisis. Weeks from now, a first round of cuts will eliminate close to three dozen bus routes. Other bus lines would be truncated, cutting off service for those who need to travel to the end of a line. Trains, trolleys and buses will all come less often, and fare increases mean riders will pay 21.5% more for the diminished service. Things will get even more dire in January. A second set of cuts would put all rail service to bed after 9 p.m. Some regional rail lines would be totally cut, including one of SEPTA's most popular lines. 'The cuts are everywhere, in every neighborhood, every mode,' said Leslie Richards, who served as SEPTA CEO until late last year. 'The public has just been universally distraught by this,' said Connor Descheemaker, a transit activist who lives in Philadelphia. When she saw the announcement of the planned cuts in Philly, Senia Lopez went into 'panic mode.' Lopez, 30, takes the bus to and from home to her work at a grocery delivery warehouse in North Philly. These days, Lopez has the option of taking a couple of bus lines for both portions of her route, meaning she typically waits only 10 or so minutes for a ride. That's going to change when the first round of transit cuts hits just weeks from now. Two of the buses Lopez regularly uses to commute will be slashed entirely. The others will see reduced service. 'There's no viable way for me to get from my neighborhood to the neighborhood of my job without having to go farther away and come back,' she said. Lopez said she might have to alter her commute by taking a bus to a train toward Philly's downtown — traveling the opposite direction from her job — and then taking a bus from downtown to the warehouse where she works. 'It would double my commute,' said Lopez, who doesn't have a drivers' license. 'There's no way around it.' That's not to mention the impact of the impending cuts to Lopez's commute to her second job as a photographer's assistant for weekend events. In January, rail service is slated to stop entirely after 9 p.m., which would leave Lopez stranded downtown after working events such as weddings. 'I'm never done earlier than 10,' she said, meaning she'd have to take a ride-share home to the tune of $30 to $60, eating into at least an hour or two of her earnings from the event in question. Negotiations around transit funding in Pennsylvania have been fraught, intensely partisan and marked by a rural-urban divide. Unlike in deep blue Illinois, the Pennsylvania statehouse is divided, with Democrats holding onto a narrow one-seat majority in the House and Republicans controlling the Senate. The legislature is weeks past the deadline for its budget, in which transit funding is a major sticking point. 'There is still no deal in sight,' the Philadelphia Inquirer reported last week. 'Funding transit is something that we can live without in our caucus,' Joe Pittman, the state Senate majority leader, a Republican, said in June. State Sen. Nikil Saval, a Democrat whose district includes Philadelphia's downtown and who has pushed for transit funding, told the Tribune he wouldn't vote for a budget that didn't include transit dollars. 'That can't be an option,' he said. But the cuts are getting closer. Last week, SEPTA started posting alert signs at bus stops, letting riders know their routes are on the chopping block. 'We're all systems go, planning for the cuts to be put into place. The hope is obviously that we would be able to roll those back, but there does come a certain point where you can't roll them back,' SEPTA's budget director, Erik Johanson, said in an interview two weeks ago. Northern Illinois' transit agencies have issued similar warnings to state legislators, who failed to pass transit funding during their spring session. Without a legislative solution soon, they warn, planned cuts could be hard to reverse. The CTA, Metra and Pace are in the midst of planning multiple budgets for different funding scenarios next year. Layoff notices for some of the 3,000 workers who could lose their jobs under the new paradigm could go out as soon as September or October. Here, negotiations around transit funding are tied to the overhaul of the structure of the region's transit agencies. A mantra of 'no funding without reform' has come to dominate conversations around the topic in Springfield. During the spring legislative session, lawmakers in both chambers introduced bills that would have replaced the Regional Transportation Authority, the governing body for CTA, Metra and Pace, with a new entity called the Northern Illinois Transit Authority that would be given broad planning responsibilities. But after months of behind-the-scenes negotiations, lawmakers only started sharing ideas for revenue generation days before the end-of-session deadline. Shortly before their legislative deadline, the Illinois Senate approved a version of the bill that would have funded the state's public transit systems with revenue streams that included a controversial $1.50 package delivery fee. But the bill was never called in the House. Lawmakers plan to return to the Capitol for a veto session in October, although they'll now need a three-fifths majority in each chamber to pass legislation that would take effect before Illinois runs out of federal funds. Transit advocates have said that meeting during veto session isn't soon enough to avert disaster. They've urged lawmakers to return for a special session this summer, though, as of the end of July, there was no indication they planned to do so. Last week, Gov. JB Pritzker told reporters he didn't 'see any reason' to call a special session. In an interview with the Tribune, state Sen. Ram Villivalam, a Chicago Democrat who sponsored the transit funding bill that passed the Senate, said legislators 'saw the sense of urgency.' But when asked about whether he supported returning to Springfield before October, Villivalam said the decision was one for the governor and legislative leadership to make. 'That is above my pay grade,' he said. Other mass transit systems across the country, including in Boston, Washington, D.C., and the Bay Area are also facing looming funding gaps exacerbated by the expiration of federal pandemic aid. Local transit agencies have stretched their pandemic dollars further than most peer agencies, the RTA has said. Chicago-area transit agencies receive a smaller share of their operating revenue from the state than their peer systems, according to 2019 data from the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. However, other agencies, including SEPTA and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority in D.C., have seen infusions of short-term funding from state and local governments that have delayed severe service cuts. That was the case in Pennsylvania last year, when the state's Democratic governor, Josh Shapiro, directed $153 million in federal highway funds to SEPTA. SEPTA also increased fares by 7.5% at the time, delaying the additional and more significant increase it plans to make this year. The agency has said it is operating under an austerity program. In Illinois, the CTA has faced some criticism for its finances, but has defended its efficiency, arguing that it has the lowest overhead expense ratio and lowest level of public funding per trip among its peer agencies. Meanwhile, the transit timer is running out. The impending budget deficit, which has been previously estimated to be around $771 million in Illinois, could end up being roughly $150 million to $225 million lower than expected due to revenue from online e-commerce sales. But even in the best-case scenario, the deficit would still total more than $500 million without more funding. Villivalam said he had not heard of a temporary funding measure being discussed in Illinois. Lawmakers, he said, were focused on passing legislation that would see transit fully funded here. But as the deadline for cuts creeps closer in Illinois, regional transportation administrators are keeping a close eye on service cuts elsewhere. At their monthly meeting Thursday, members of the RTA's board discussed the similarly precarious financial situations of peer transit agencies, including SEPTA. The sheer scale of the potential service cuts in Pennsylvania hit home. '45% service cuts in Philadelphia,' remarked RTA board Chairman Kirk Dillard at Thursday's meeting. 'It's unfathomable.'
CBS News
5 days ago
- Automotive
- CBS News
2 Metra lines stopped after car hits bridge in Chicago
Train service was stopped on two Metra lines after a car hit a bridge on Friday morning. The crash at Armitage Avenue is impacting Metra's Union Pacific Northwest and Union Pacific North lines. No further details were immediately available on the crash. Metra Union Pacific Northwest train No. 605 is stopped near Ogilvie Transportation Center, and train No. 602 is stopped near Clybourn. Both inbound and outbound Metra UP-North are stopped near Clybourn. Kris Habermehl said a track inspection will need to be conducted for the trains to continue safely. This is a developing story. CBS News Chicago will continue to provide updates.
Chicago Tribune
5 days ago
- Chicago Tribune
Editorial: Bonjour, Cafe Metra. Our order is affordable, reliable travel.
At the end of a sweaty trek from the office to Ogilvie or Union Station, all most passengers want is for their train to show up — and to get them home on time. Hungry? Ogilvie's food court and the French Market offer plenty of options. Thirsty? There are bars and cafes too. Chicago commuters aren't exactly short on access to refreshments, though they do often face delays and standing-room-only trains during rush hour. So we have to wonder about the transit agency's priorities after officials mentioned the idea of adding cafe cars on trains at a recent meeting. We'd wager there's more demand for a happy-hour beer than a cappuccino, but either way, this isn't new territory for the suburban rail line. Bar cars were a storied staple in Chicago train culture for years, but the agency cut them in 2008 — not over concerns about alcohol consumption on trains, but because the venture wasn't worth the trouble. Back then, the Tribune reported that Metra said the cars produced less than $100,000 a year in revenue. Now, beverage service on trains may have a revival. Metra even tested the idea with a recent 'Commuter Coffee Rave' that drew positive feedback from attendees. But not everyone was impressed. Scroll through Metra's Facebook post and you'll see another kind of feedback: riders begging for air conditioning that works, trains that don't break down and schedules that stick. Hard to argue with that. We're a simple people, we Chicago commuters. We just want to get where we're going. And because of past experience, we don't expect a lot from suburban trains. If we could get anything we wanted out of our suburban transit providers, we'd settle just for clean, safe rides in and out of the city for a reasonable fare and without those frequent delays. If suburban trains had an immaculate record, maybe we'd be more open to entertaining the idea of expanding into beverage service. But Metra's core ridership just wants reliable, affordable service. And if they're craving caffeine or an adult beverage? Already available to go at the bottom of the Ogilvie escalators.
CBS News
6 days ago
- Automotive
- CBS News
Metra Union Pacific Northwest trains halted after train hits car on Chicago's Northwest Side
Metra trains on the Union Pacific Northwest train were halted during the afternoon rush Wednesday after a train hit a car on Chicago's Northwest Side. The train hit the car at the Bryn Mawr crossing, near Bryn Mawr Avenue between the diagonal Avondale Avenue and Northwest Highway at about 6200 West in the Norwood Park neighborhood. The outbound train, No. 641, was due into Harvard, Illinois, at 5:50 p.m. It was stopped along with all other Union Pacific Northwest inbound and outbound trains. The anticipated duration of the delay was unknown. There was no evidence of a wrecked vehicle or any large-scale damage, but Metra police were on the scene investigating. Bryn Mawr Avenue remained open to traffic. CHECK: Metra updates
CBS News
22-07-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Amtrak celebrates Chicago Union Station 100th anniversary
Amtrak and Illinois officials are celebrating the 100th anniversary of Chicago's Union Station Tuesday. The transit hub was dubbed "America's finest railroad terminal" back in 1925 and Monday afternoon Amtrak will unveil a new art exhibition to mark its centennial. They will also look ahead to the station's future. In the past few years, Union Station has seen $70 million in renovations and upgrades. Union Station was designed by famed architect Daniel Burnham. It took 10 years to build and cost $75 million at the time, which is equivalent to about $1 billion in today's dollars. It is the third-busiest station in the entire country, the fourth-busiest owned by Amtrak. The station moves more than 3 million Amtrak passengers and 35 million Metra riders each year.
