CTA Tattler

At this point, I don't care anymore. If all this crap comes to fruition I'll either a) get over my fear of riding a bike in traffic b) get a job within walking distance from my apartment or c) move.

These "scary" cuts are going to make enough riders "nervous" that they don't use the CTA anymore. Those who continue will pay the higher fees. Doing the math, there's a good chance the CTA will lose alot of customers and have no more money to show for it than they do now.

Its really unfortunate that people like Snarla would have to leave as an option two potentially life-altering choices: new job or moving. The CTA has more impact on our lives than they care to acknowledge.

I waited for my bus this morning when a PACE came by instead, going to the same place, so I figured what the heck. They have TVs on the bus! Imaging what it cost for those TVs, having them installed, the extras that are not part of regular broadcasting that they show, the television antennas installed in the buses, and of course replacements due to vandalism or what have you. Good to see they are making the effort to put funding where it matters most.

In addition to the bus routes I'm guessing the Yellow, Purple, and possibly Pink lines will be going under the ax based on ridership.

Removal of the Purple line express from servicing Brown Line stops from Belmont through the loop will cut a substantial chunk of already limited service (due to 3 tracking) in that corridor. I sure don't look forward to the evening commute if this actually happens.

Ed, While I agree that this annual crying wolf mess needs to get fixed once and for all, it's my guess that the TVs on PACE are probably a revenue generator rather than a drain.
I typically stay in the city, but i find myself on the PACE busses with TVs from time to time and it's a non-stop advertising loop to a captive audience.

I'm in Snarla's position. I've only lived here three months, and have managed to get completely freaked in that time. I'm relatively sure that my job is in an area that will be deemed "keepable," and regardless of fare increases, it will still be cheaper than a car. My options are going to be a second job, or another job completely, because I refuse to leave. Where I came from is worse than this, and, honestly, i love the city.

But I still, honestly, can not believe it's come this far. It's disgusting how many politicians and, frankly, drivers and suburbanites that don't understand that there's a bunch of us that are going to have to start questioning our entire lives because there's a LOT of selfish people in this state.

At this point, I have given up expecting any long-term, non Band-Aid improvements, and I have given up caring.

With local taxes and fees about to go through the roof--for what? corruption and TIFs?--and services going downhill, my girlfriend and I, both well-paid professionals who were thinking about staying longterm in Chicago, are now planning how to leave. Sure, all cities are expensive and have corruption, but not like Chicago, and at least a few other cities actually have mass transit that works better--DC and NYC come to mind. Maybe we will move somewhere where we will need a car--well, at least those smaller cities have housing that is not as pricey as in Chicago.

I've lived here more than 10 years and I've simply had enough. I see no evidence that this crap won't continue--higher costs and fewer services and the same untalented or corrupt leaders in charge of the city, county and state. I hope to be out of Chicago and this state sometime next year. Believe me, many of my friends and coworkers are thinking the same thing.

tom77, I know it's in all cities, but bedbugs are running absolutely rampant through NYC; frankly, given the expense and nightmares involved with them, I'd advise ruling out NYC for the near future.

This is unbe-fucking-lievable. How has it come this far? I realize that these come from different funds, but I, like tom77, find it infuriating that we are going to be paying ridiculous amounts in taxes, but we are being screwed with the transit situation. If Chicago were a store I shopped at, I'd be boycotting it right now.

Maybe doomsday is what it will take before people in Chicago and Cook County see that our interests no longer lie with the State of Illinois. We need to find a way to separate our finances from the state -- collect all our own taxes and let the state scramble for a "bailout" every year.

I don't understand people like Tom77 who continue to bitch about Chicago as if the problem is anything but the failure of "our representatives" in Springfield to even begin to do their jobs. Audits show that the CTA works pretty efficiently. The crisis comes from Springfield pols led by Blagojevich, Madigan, and Jones who never should have been allowed to hold public office, and should be removed right now.

As far as I know, NYC is suffering funding starvation very similar to what we are experiencing, but they'll decline more slowly because they started off so much bigger. DC seems to be doing just fine, and the reason is simple: they get lavish funding for their showcase transit system. They are a case study proving that transit problems are not about city/country corruption (it doesn't get much more corrupt than DC), but about equitable funding. It's too bad the anger around here is misdirected away from where it squarely belongs -- the posturing, lying traitors we mistakenly allowed into Springfield.

Davey: I also fault the state, though perhaps my post was not crystal clear. I have lived in this state for all but 3 of my 30 or so years, and I have never seen Illinois so bad, even though anyone with any interest in civic finances could see a decade ago we were going down the wrong path.

As for NYC and DC--yes, they have problems, but I cannot imagine anyone even thinking about a transit "doomsday." I mean, Manhattan would virtually collapse. Granted, I know Chicago is much different from NYC, but for all of Daley's talk, neither he nor other leaders really seem to know what moving forward really means. Less transit and higher property taxes are not it.

Finally, Daley shares a big part of the blame for this. Yes, the state funding formula needs revision, but Daley, as one of the state's most powerful leaders, and the leader of the city that would suffer the most from transit cutbacks, has spent more time bitching about the Children's Museum than about transit. And don't forget--he basically controls the CTA. Much of this happened under his watch, and he deserves a fair share of the blame. After all, no one forced him to go along with stupid expansion plans for the CTA while the agency neglected basic upkeep.

As well, Daley shares all the blame for out-of-control city spending--that is, corruption and bloated workforces--and ruinous tax schemes such as TIFs.

Whoever is to blame, the reality is this: Chicago, already getting much more expensive for working class and middle class folks, is about to get even more expensive, even as basic services decay. Why would any sane person with few family ties to this area stay here instead of moving to a place that offers those basic services or, at the least, won't squeeze you on expenses? That is the choice I am facing now. And that is a choice more of my friends and coworkers are facing as well.

Some might say, "Leave if you don't like it, and don't let the door hit ya." OK, that's fine, but hardly a good attitude if you care about the future of Chicago. After all, everyone who leaves takes potential tax revenue with him. And who makes up that lost revenue? The people left behind.

You see this merely as a debate on transit. I see it as a larger debate about why people should live in Chicago and, by extension, Illinois. What do we get out of it anymore? As I said, I'm a (down)state native, so the idea of leaving was not easy to come by.

Sorry for the ramble, but because of our crappy leaders, this is what I've been thinking about for months now.

I moved to Chicago because it's a great city and because there were more opportunities here for me than in Michigan. In fact, I finally got my dream job about four months ago after working about two years as a temp. I am not going to leave this city, my friends, my community or my new job because people can't get their shit together. I need public transit. What am I supposed to do? This is a matter of people's lives. Why isn't this being taken more seriously by the people who are supposed to be working for my and Chicago's welfare?

I hate to keep bike trolling here, but with the state of the CTA, I started bike commuting full time over a year ago, and I haven't looked back. I have the occasional day where I can't bike, and I struggle through the scary long CTA commutes for it. 1 hour 15 minutes from Howard to Belmont & California? Come on! It takes me less than 30 minutes to ride that.

Anyway, Snarla & Sarah, ride with us. Hit up the Chicago Bike Federation and talk to them about commuting options. If the CTA falls apart, I hope everyone who doesn't want to buy a car/move takes advantage of all of the infrastrucutre that's been put in for cycling in the city. Then they can help us keep pushing for more.

Because at the end of the day, this is a downstate funding problem, and I don't know what it will take for Blag & company to understand how serious this is. In the meantime, we all have to get to work somehow.

Just please, for the love of all, do NOT ride on Ashland or Western. Stick to recommended bike routes like Halsted, Lincoln, Milwaukee, Elston, and Damen.

Flynn, I'm considering the bike thing, at least once spring rolls around. But i might need some practice since i haven't ridden one in .... *counts* 16 years. =)

Biking is great, and I hope more people do it.

But if I hear one more biker even imply that the solution to this mess is just bike more, bike more, my head will explode. Biking is great, but is not even a sliver of a substitute for efficient mass transit.

Even Amsterdam, perhaps the most bike friendly city in the Western world, understands the importance of mass transit.

More power to the bike commuters. After my last wreck I had to promise my mother I would never get on one ever again. I made that promise as I was being wheeled into X Ray. Even without the promise, it would scare the $^%&# out of me to bike to work in the traffic.

I'm afraid I echo tom77. The city is corrupt and dysfunctional, the state is corrupt and dysfunctional, the city hates the state, and the state hates the city. The cows here beg for even higher taxes even though the last few tax increases only got us to where we are today; the rallying cry "fix the funding formula" has given way to "eh, sure, here, have more money."

I sure hope Chicago's no higher than fourth or fifth on the Olympics list as some have reported lately, but I'm getting tired of waiting to see if that would be the last straw. Is anywhere perfect? Of course not. But there are other cities that don't grind my soul with claims of being "world class" even as the infrastructure crumbles around them. And my bar is that low these days after a decade here.

Oh, incidentally, I've gotten back on my bike this spring and summer after -- with only two exceptions -- not riding one since the mid '70s. And while it hasn't always been easy, I've ridden Ashland between Edgewater and East Village a few times without any trouble at all. But I'd never commute on one.

I agree with Snarla. Just make the damn cuts now so I can start my new life as a metra rider.

I'll add one more hope to your list, Bob. I hope this means the end of the Daley era.

There's rumblings about cutting rail lines, how could they possibly justify mothballing them after spending at least a billion dollars on improvements over the last few years? What will the Feds. think when they go hat in hand looking for matching funds for future rehabilitation projects after pissing away recent investments? The Yellow Line got brand new 3rd rail a couple of years ago. The Purple got new bridges. The Pink Line is just a new name for the old Cermak Blue Line which was completely rebuilt! And the Brown Line is in the middle of a half-billion dollar project. I've been impressed by Ron Huberman up to now, but the latest "doomsday" threats have me rethinking my position. Did he hire Todd Stroger to develop the 2008 budget?

As much as you all love to bitch and complain (and, lord knows, you *definitely* love to), after all the complaining and moving plans and threats to never ride mass transit in Chicago if _________ happens are thrown around...you'll still be in this city, still riding mass transit, and coming up with the next "if ______ happens, I'm really leaving! I swear, this time for sure!"

You complain now, but you'll get over it.

Joe: Hate to tell you, but I suspect you will be wrong. I mean, some people I know have actually moved out because they cannot take anymore of this crap. Granted, that is only a small sample, but I am amazed at how many former fans of Chicago I know are actively looking for jobs in NYC, DC or even Milwaukee or St Lous (where, at the least, the smaller cities offer less expensive housing). People are starting to get the feeling that Chicago is a sinking ship and that corruption will never change, CTA will never get better and schools will certainly never get better.

People have fled Chicago before, and only recently began to come back, although in smaller numbers. Trust me, it can happen again.

If the worst cuts come in January, will this affect Metra, or should we just all move close to our jobs? I am seriously considering moving to suburbs where Metra will take me 30 miles to my job in less time it takes to go 8 miles in Chicago on CTA bus. Or is this going to affect Metra? How? I'm seriously considering whether to move to the suburbs where i like it, or to downdown where my job is. I'm sick of all this doomsday stuff which i usually doubt but this time i am seriously believing it.

Well, lets see, Pace is cutting weekend and evening service, do you think that Metra will not be as well?

DC? You've got to be kidding me, their metro is like Bart, great from to and from the 'burbs but not so great in town. Maybe Philly or Boston...

Daley is just like his dad, the city was well on it's way to bankruptcy under his father and he's continued the tradition with a yuppie friendly veneer.

tom77, you said it better than I ever could, I feel the EXACT same way. For me, Mayor Daley is the symbol of everything I hate about Chicago. He runs as a Democrat yet has no interest at all in helping out the poor and middle classes but he wins every single fricking election. And things just keep getting worse (unless you're a tourist) and more expensive.

It's depressing because I really love this city but it's like being in love with a hopeless alcoholic. You can only stand by and watch as they drive themself into the ground.

Joe Blow: We get over it because so far it hasn't happened yet.

After 10 years in the city for me, 16 for my wife, we gave up after growing incredibly tired of the CTA, the ridiculous price of a decent home and Mayor Daley.

We always saw ourselves as lifelong Chicagoans, with plans to raise our new baby in the city - unlike many who automatically hit the 'burbs when a baby arrives.

Still, we couldn't take it anymore. And, guess what? Our commute living in a far suburb - 45 miles away - is the same as the 8 mile commute from Western/Lincoln (Lincoln Square).

Yes, we do miss certain aspects of the city, and the 'burbs are an adjustment (mostly in a good way), but hey - the people are incredibly friendly, the Metra is a commuting dream (quiet, seats aplenty in and out, room to read or work on the laptop) and filled with polite fellow commuters.

If you can't take the city any more - but can't leave your job or family and pack up for NYC or wherever else you're dreaming of, there are options - and they're not as bad as you might assume.

Those of you who say that people won't leave Chicago because of the CTA are wrong.

I left Chicago this summer in large part because of the CTA. After seven years in Chicago, I'd grown sick of the buses not running on time, the trains moving at 6 mph, of missing a flight because it took 45 minutes for the Blue Line train to move just from Irving Park to ORD. I got fed up and moved to SF, where my commute is about 20 minutes to go two miles. (In Chicago, the same distance took just under an hour.)

Unless Chicago fixes its sorry state of public transit, more people like me—young, educated, professional, creative—will leave. Or they won't come at all. I'm so much happier now that I don't have to ride the CTA. Not trying to gloat, just saying that yes, people will leave. People are already doing so.

Don't get frustrated with Huberman ... anybody with sense should have seen this coming when Blago offered up the blood money last month, which was why Humberman didn't want to take it. Blago was simply stealing from CTA's '08 budget, making this more severe version of doomsday inevitable. I believe many people, including this blog's author, made that point at the time.

Like a lot of the newbies above, my girlfriend and I loved Chicago when we first came here. At four months, we were still trying to love it, despite our growing frustration with the fact that it takes at least an hour to move six miles. We were like those above who said they refused to be forced out by the city's growing unlivability. Now, three years later, we're saying to hell with the place (even though it's already there), and are actively looking for jobs someplace else. We'll be gone within a year, taking our tax revenue with us while Daley plays his fiddle and Chicago burns.

In the meantime, I've given up CTA completely in favor of biking, but I know that no matter how much I enjoy biking, it's just not the solution for most people. Chicago still needs public transit.

Very true, Clint. If you're, for example, blind, mobility-impaired, or debilitated, biking is not an option. If you're traveling any distance with small children, or going to or from Amtrak or the airports with a big suitcase, or if you have to lug a lot of work home with you, the bike isn't going to work so well.

And if we think oblivious, narcissistic, and sociopathic drivers, double-parked delivery trucks, and SUVs large enough to have their own military budgets pose problems for bikers now, just wait until the CTA's meltdown pushes some tens of thousands more into traffic.

Folks, it's not about funding! It's about accountability! Every year we hear the same old, same old! Bail out the CTA! Doomsday! Your route will be cut! Then, miraculously, enough money appears for the CTA to limp along for another year! Then repeat the cycle!

Folks, it's time to put an end to the cycle! No more bailouts! No more tax increases! It's time to privatize at least a part of the system!

Now I know that Paul F. said that many years ago, transit was privately operated and it's true that these privately-owned companies were failing. But why were they failing? Because of a
5-cent fare, which was imposed by the government. Because of outdated work rules which were enacted when the L was pulled by steam locomotives. Because of the inability to drop poor performing routes and add new ones as the city expanded! The CTA actually flourished until the mid-1960s or so because they had management which was left-over from when the L and buses were privately owned companies (the CTA was formed in 1947). These were experienced transit professionals, but when they retired, they were replaced by men who'd never sat behind the wheel of a bus!

Fast forward to today. Privatization will work for the following reasons:

1) Mass transit use is on the increase again.
2) Private companies like Herzog Transit Services are successfully operating transit systems across the United States.
3) Europe has privatized much of its transit successfully.
4) A private service knows that it must be financially responsible AND deliver a quality service. Otherwise it can be replaced.
5) A private service would be allowed to set fares and service standards according to what the ridership dictates.

Operating a private service doesn't mean hiring people at minimum wage. One of the stipulations could be that whomever is hired to take over the L or buses would have to pay its employees a decent wage and have decent benefits. Wouldn't employees who know that they are working for a service that's expected to be good take more pride in their jobs?

Still not convinced? Just think of UPS versus the Post Office!

Ed, good on you for figuring out what it cost to put tv's on buses. If you could do all that, you could have done your homework and found out that those tv's didn't cost Pace a dime and that they actually generate a significant amount of revenue because of the advertising sold. The following information was extremely easy to find, so please consider doing your homework before posting to a public board:

http://www.pacebus.com/pdf/MITF_Archive/mitf032306.pdf

The article about "Transit TV" is on the third page of that link, btw.

I moved out of Chicago in early '06 after eight years as I had a job offer downstate that was too good to pass up. At that time my CTA routes were still manageable. I miss many things about Chicago, but after looking at the further deterioration of the CTA and continued corruption, cronyism, and onerous taxation from Daley I do not regret my decision one iota.

I love Chicago so I hate to say this: Chicago has already peaked and will only get worse under Daley. For Chicago to reach great heights again it desperately needs a bold leader whose primary concern lies with everyday Chicagoans and not the politically connected elite.

I am one of the complainers who finally got fed up with the CTA and moved. I now live 40 miles from the city and my commute is 10 minutes less than it was when I lived 8 miles from downtown. Not only is it less time, but the trains are cleaner, more comfortable, more relaxing, and faster.

It is about $20 more a month but it was worth it to me, and with the fare hikes coming up, I may actually come out ahead on that too.

In the 5 months since I moved the train has been late by 10 minutes 3 times and once the train broke down and we had to switch trains, so I was 45 minutes late getting home. That isn't too bad over 5 months.

According to Crain's today, I don't think any Metra riders are going to "come out ahead". The article also states that Metra is looking at closing stations and reducing weekend service in 2008:

Metra is expected to release its 2008 budget next month, and whatever the spending plan calls for will be “difficult and painful” to riders without new state funding, said Carole Doris, chairman of the agency’s board.

Mr. Pagano had previously said fares could rise by 10% next year, but the 20% figure represents a new level of severity. Metra, along with the region’s other public transit agencies — the Chicago Transit Authority and suburban bus system Pace — are facing gaping budget holes that may force them to raise fares and cut service.

Full article Here:
http://tinyurl.com/2shmok

or Here:
http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?post_date=2007-10-12&id=26726

I just saw the list of cuts that will happen in January. tghere will be no bus service to the north side, along the lake. How are we suppposed to get to work? Evne the 147 and 151 are to be gone.. That is unbeliefable.. What are we supposed to do?

PookieMarie, they are keeping the 151 Sheridan.

It's going golden era for parking lot owners! Hell, if I owned a lot, I'd TRIPLE my fees once this takes place!

And if I owned a used car lot I'd have the "Guv Rod's Used Car Sale." All prices clearly marked on the windshield! No haggling! And, if you bring in your current CTA or Pace passes, or Chicago Cards, and turn them in, you get 10% off the price!

Oh, if only I had the capital, I'd cha-ching my way thru this mess!

Of course, I'm injecting humor into my above statement...somewhat! I do think that parking lot owners and used car dealers are going to make out like bandits. You know who will lose? Places like our museums because there has been tremendous growth in suburbanites using Metra on weekends to visit the Planetarium, the Shedd Acquarium, etc. I have a feeling that rather than face HUGE amounts of congestions then pay HUGE parking fees, people just won't come Downtown or to the Museums or Michigan Avenue.

I do agree with Catherine above. I think that the CTA should look at privatizing part of its system, especially the L. Herzog has proven itself to be a worthy transit operator. I also think that the L should be on zoned fares. Why should a trip from Grand Avenue to Division Street cost the same as a trip from O'Hare to LaSalle Street? The new operator of the L could charge $4.75 to board at O'Hare (take advantadge of the tourist trade), $4.00 to board at Rosemont and $3.75 to board at Cumberland.

Governer Rod, have you FORGOTTEN that you are from Chicago? Well, I guess you could lose touch with reality, what with that $4,000 per flight jet you use!

"Why should a trip from Grand Avenue to Division Street cost the same as a trip from O'Hare to LaSalle Street? The new operator of the L could charge $4.75 to board at O'Hare (take advantadge of the tourist trade), $4.00 to board at Rosemont and $3.75 to board at Cumberland."
That would be just nuts. It may be by accident, but the reason a one price system works so well on the CTA is because the time saved by using public transportation, as opposed to driving and parking, decreases the farther you travel (and at a certain point it takes longer). Yes, you pay more in gas but people choose to use public transportation more on the basis of convenience rather than price. Just compare the amount of people who take the CTA downtown from Evanston or the far north side (especially at off-peak times when parking is cheaper) with those who take it from a mile or less from downtown. Have you noticed the huge crowds that get on the red line at Clark/Division or take the Brown line from Diversey or Southport (though obviously not now since they are closed)? And this is probably only about half the people that use the CTA since many people also take the bus. Compare that to the amount of people who take the red line from places like Thorndale or Morse or the Green line from Oak Park or from the far northwest side on the blue line. Yes, there is a lower population density in those areas but not close to the difference in transit ridership. People are much more likely to use public transportation when they are traveling short distances through areas with high congestion, especially when it is difficult and/or expensive to park. It is stupid to think of charging lower prices for these trips. That is the core CTA ridership. It amazes me that so many people suggest imposing a zone system. There have been many posts on this blog suggesting that and there was even an op-ed piece in the Tribune from someone who should know better around a week ago. Many people point to Metra as a model. But the reality is they have a flat fare on the weekends no matter how far you are going. On the weekdays their zone fares make sense because it still is usually quicker to ride the train longer distances than driving in rush hour and it is much more expensive to park. I think they would get more revenue if they charged a flat fare in the evenings. A much lower pecentage of the CTA's ridership is rush hour commuters downtown than Metra's(though obviously it is still extreamly high). It would be completely absurd and counterproductive for the CTA to charge more for longer distances.

I appreciate your feedback, MK, but I don't entirely agree with you. Other systems like BART and METRO (Washington DC) charge zone fares and have done so successfully. METRO even has higher fares during rush hours and they don't accept day passes until after 9:00am. I have not doubt that most of METRO's riders, particularly during rush hours, are non-tourists. Even with the zoned fares and higher fares during rush hours, it is still cheaper to take METRO than it would be to park downtown. The same would be true for the CTA. Could you park ANYWHERE in Chicago for less than $5.00?

(As a humorous side note, once I was on company assignment in Peoria and I parked the company van in a downtown Peoria garage. I lost my ticket and the attendant was very concerned that I would have to pay the full day rate of $2.00!)

How in the world are we supposed to get to work? They are planning to take out all the routes that travel Lake Shore Drive that carry a lot of people from the north side to downtown. Every single one of them. On major streets - Addison, Foster, every one. What are we supposed to do? We cannot bike in the cold winter!!!!

Sarah, thank you,, it looked like it said 151 Sheridan. It was hard to read on my computer, but i saw Sheridan, and that is the #151. Thats a huge route that covers a lot of area on the north side and a lot of people use it to go to the medical facilities that are on the route like the hospitals along the northside and the lake.

That's it! I am absolutely fed up! And I am simply "opting out" of mass transit! I live along Sheridan Road in the Edgewater area and I work Downtown. Years ago, I gave up on the Red Line. It was simply too slow and unreliable then--it's gotten worse--and there are simply too many weirdos and homeless people on that line. I don't mean to sound so snobby, but it is supposed to be transportation and not a "flop house." I've had too many "homeless" people aggressively panhandle at me and more than once I've told them off! So I switched to the 147 bus, and believe me, it is a lot nicer!

But now that route's on the chopping block. What am I supposed to do, take the #151 instead? Some of my co-workers live close to me (I called them today). We are going to set up a van pool instead as two of us have mini-vans. We are also going to ask our employer, the Federal Government, of we can have subsidized parking instead of transit checks.

My husband and I will also tell our two kids that there will be far fewer trips to the Lincoln Park Zoo (if you think parking around there now is difficult...) the Museum Campus, and Brookfield Zoo (because there will be no weekend Metra service and the Eisenhower is already congested).

In fact, I'm thinking about opting out of voting too. What's the point if all we have to choose from are dunderheads like Blago and corrupt people like Daley?

Catherine D.,

It is sad that you feel this way! But I see your point. And it is sad that it has come to this. But I would rather pay $4.00 to ride and go to zoned fares on the L if it meant preserving service.

I also think that part of the problem is that Blago has forgotten where he's from. Why is he courting the voters of downstate vs. those from his hometown? Maybe he has just too many cronies from outside the Chicagoland Area now. I also hate to sound "snobby", but let's face it, the people who are from "south-of-I80" are a bunch of culturally ignorant hicks who have no clue what it takes to run a big city and have no idea how much tax money Chicagoland puts into the rest of the state.

And yet, did you know that a couple of years ago Gov. Rod doubled the subsidy that Illinois pays to Amtrak? (Under the Amtrak Law, a state can request additional Amtrak services if said state is willing to provide subsidies for such). That's right, Illinois doubled the annual subsidy from $12 million to $24 million. This doubled the services on the Chicago-Carbondale and Chicago-Quincy routes to twice daily and the Chicago-Springfield-St. Louis route now has I think 6 daily departures. No doubt that Illinois lawmakers don't care if Chicagoans can't get to work, but they are careful to make sure that Chicagoans can make day trips to Hicksville!

While I am an ardent Amtrak supporter, I'd like to know where THAT subsidy came from, especially since the state was pleading poverty at the time.

Furthermore, the state of Illinois is prepared to spend up to $50 million dollars to begin service on a Chicago-Rockford-Dubuque line! This is to upgrade 30 mph track on the former Illinois Central. This is a route that Amtrak itself gave up in 1981 because it was hopelessly unproductive. It was called the BLACKHAWK and it normally ran with two cars, one coach and one snack car and even that was more than sufficient.

And Downstaters laugh at Chicago for ceding all city political power to one man. If Chicago Democrats in Springfield had their act together they could have passed a CTA funding bill before May 31 without involving Republicans. Now they are in a position where they have to reach out to Downstate Republicans, and fueling the Chicago vs. Downstate fire won't help.

With the suburbs sprawling ever further and traffic on the Northwest Tollway getting ever worse Rockford is a much more viable Amtrak stop than it was 25 years ago. Amtrak to Rockford could also help ease pressure on O'Hare by utilizing Rockford's airport.

Did you people along Sheridan REALLY think that the express buses were sacred and wouldn't be cut when the CTA quite explicitly said that it was cheaper to move people by el than by bus? Mary Ann Smith isn't going to be able to help you on this one...

The CTA, the State Leigislature, and the City all KNEW about these problems YEARS AGO! Why did they wait 'til now (when it's too late) to act?

I was at the East Troy Electric Railroad today in East Troy, WI. This is a trolley line/museum that operates vintage Chicago L cars and other vintage electric railroad equipment. I was riding on a set of vintage L cars, when a circuit blew and the cars ground to a halt.

"Wow, a breakdown, just like on the real L!" said one of the passengers.

"Yes," I replied "but unlike on the real L, their budget here is secure!"

Oh, in reply to Red Line's comments above, the bus routes along Sheridan Road were being touted as alternatives to the "Brown Line/3-Track" project. But now those buses are being eliminated. So imagine how long the Red Line will take now because of this and the slow zones AND the "3 Track Project."

So that's why my co-workers and I are forming a Van Pool.

Incidentally, the "Brown Line/3-Track Project" is years away from being completed and will all be for nothing. Worthless. Why? Because so many people will have given up on the CTA. So instead of running crowded six-car trains on the Brown Line, we'll have half-empty eight-car trains.