CTA: Rauner's Proposed Cuts Deeper Than We Thought
The draconian cut in state aid to the CTA proposed in Gov. Bruce Rauner's budget might be even bigger than first thought.
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The draconian cut in state aid to the CTA proposed in Gov. Bruce Rauner's budget might be even bigger than first thought.
A Regional Transportation Authority analysis released Thursday has determined that the CTA, Metra and Pace face $36.4 billion in capital needs over the next 10 years.
CTA bus ridership is down and the transit agency is offering a lot of reasons why.
The head of the Chicago's areas umbrella transit agency recommends Metra follow up reports that many of its locomotive engineers conductors bring home over $100,000 a year, reports WBBM's John Cody.
Chicago-area commuters have never seen anything like it. Metra has proposed fare increases averaging 10.8 percent, starting in February, with the guarantee of additional increases every year through 2024.
The CTA hopes to attract more riders by speeding up its buses, and giving buses green light priority over other vehicles is a key part of that strategy, but it says it is encountering problems obtaining federal grant money that's been in the hands of the Regional Transportation Authority since 2012.
Republican state Sen. Kirk Dillard, who made two attempts at Illinois governor, officially resigned from the Legislature after more than two decades in office to become chairman of the Chicago-area's Regional Transportation Authority, Senate Republican officials announced Monday.
The Regional Transportation Authority is shifting gears – from a developer as its board chairman to a politician and attorney who actually rides mass transit regularly.
The Regional Transportation Authority may not even be around in a few months, yet it has just signed a 38-month, $5 million advertising contract targeting markets that have eluded the area's transit agencies.
RTA Chairman John Gates said he wants the agency to concentrate on what he considers doable -- and said his priority remains finding new money for capital repairs and rehabilitation.
The agency that oversees public transportation in Chicago is suing American Airlines for falsely claiming to buy "vast amounts of jet fuel" from a small office in a rural community to avoid paying tens of millions of dollars in taxes in the nation's third-largest city, where the actual work is done.
Metra soon hopes to give you E-alerts about trains at specific times, not just for specific lines.
Metra has begun a self-examination of its performance in this month's snow and bitter cold, even as the Regional Transportation Authority orders its own review.
A union official on Thursday showed reporters a photograph of a Ventra card that worked –- despite having a negative balance of $272.50.
The chairman of the Regional Transportation Authority said Wednesday the problems with the Ventra fare card system amount to "systemic failure," not just "a computer glitch." And he ordered his chief auditor to determine how much it's costing.
The agreement kept intact the historic division of the supposedly discretionary funds: 98 percent to the CTA, 2 percent to Pace, while essentially forgiving a $56 million loan to the CTA that CTA has characterized as a grant and offering Metra $2 million for capital projects.
Pace is the first of the area's transit systems to unveil a proposed 2014 budget, and it holds the line on most fares while promising additional service.
Governor Pat Quinn's transit task force has morphed from checking up on Metra to designing a transit system that's the envy of the world after a few local issues are settled. John Cody reports on day one.
Regional Transportation Authority board member William Coulson said former Metra chair Brad O'Halloran and director Larry Huggins sparked a clash with former CEO Alex Clifford over political hires at the agency.
The Regional Transportation Authority is putting the finishing touches on a sharply critical audit of former Metra CEO Alex Clifford's severance agreement – and says the commuter rail agency could have gotten out of the contract for a fraction of the potential $718,000 cost.
Although the newest appointee to the CTA's governing board suddenly backed out in the past week, the CTA's President says any upcoming agency shakeup should leave his agency out.
After, another resignation from the Metra Board, the head of the Regional Transportation Authority is pleading with suburban official to appoint members to fill all the empty seats. WBBM Political Editor Craig Dellimore has the story.
Gov. Pat Quinn has appointed former U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald and former CTA Board chair Carole Brown to a panel tasked with recommending reforms for the Chicago area's public transit agencies, in the wake of patronage allegations at Metra.
A government watchdog group said Wednesday that the resignations of two Regional Transportation Authority board members this week pointed to larger, troubling issues for the Chicago area's transit agencies.
Governor Quinn says that in the wake of the patronage and executive director payout scandal at Metra, he wants experts to look at an overhaul of the state's transportation agencies, reports WBBM Political Editor Craig Dellimore.
The city budget is a top priority as Chicago alderpeople prepare for Wednesday's City Council meeting, but the mayor and council are still far apart on a deal.
The full Chicago City Council will vote on whether or not to ban hemp-derived THC products Wednesday.
A U.S. district judge blocked Trump from deploying the California National Guard in Los Angeles and said control of the Guard must be returned to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Students at a library in Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood got a special surprise Tuesday from former President Barack Obama.
A federal judge in New York has granted a request from the Justice Department to unseal more files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The city budget is a top priority as Chicago alderpeople prepare for Wednesday's City Council meeting, but the mayor and council are still far apart on a deal.
A U.S. district judge blocked Trump from deploying the California National Guard in Los Angeles and said control of the Guard must be returned to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
A federal judge in New York has granted a request from the Justice Department to unseal more files related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
A Wisconsin judge on Tuesday refused to step aside as requested by President Donald Trump's former attorney, who faces a felony forgery case related to the 2020 election in the battleground state.
Majority Leader John Thune announced that the Senate will vote on a Republican-led measure alongside a Democratic bill to extend expiring tax credits.
A condo owner in Country Club Hills says he's forced to sell his home after his condo association failed to reimburse him for repairs to his leaking roof. Edward Hadnott's condo has sat empty since a major roof leak in 2022.
The U.S. stopped minting pennies this week, and some groups have issued a warning about the headaches that can create for some businesses and consumers.
Why is one school in the west Chicago suburb of Lisle paying a water bill three times higher than another? The answer has to do with a private utility company.
The Food and Drug Administration is warning about additional cookware brands that could be leaching lead into your food.
Walgreens said it will close its office space in Chicago's Old Post Office building.
The newest measles vaccination numbers released by Chicago Public Schools shows immunizations are finally moving in the right direction.
Two pregnant Black women recently faced alarming neglect at hospitals in Indiana and Texas, highlighting racial disparities in maternal care.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Tuesday signed a bill aimed at protecting vaccine access in Illinois.
Roseland Community Hospital on Monday celebrated the opening of a new sickle cell treatment clinic.
Consumers with the imported pans should throw them away due to the severe health risks posed by lead, the agency warns.
A Culver's is coming to Chicago's South Loop, a real estate broker has confirmed.
A new vision for passenger rail is on track in southeastern Wisconsin. The MARK Passenger Rail Commission held its inaugural meeting on December 5, 2025, at Racine City Hall.
U.S. Steel says it'll resume making steel slabs at its Granite City Works plant in Illinois amid strengthening demand.
Traffic at O'Hare International Airport is growing faster than expected, and this has Chicago city leaders wanting to make big changes to future construction plans at the airport.
Small Business Saturday was disrupted by the winter storm for many business owners in Chicago, but in the Rogers Park neighborhood, a group of business owners came together to draw customers.
Paramount Skydance's $30 per share offer comes just days after Netflix agreed to buy parts of Warner Bros. in a deal valued at nearly $83 billion.
The nominations for the 2026 Golden Globes have been announced. Here are the nominees.
Landon Wallace, better known as Power 92 radio and Chicago Bulls mixer DJ Commando, died last week.
Thirty-five years after throngs headed to a theater near them to see "Home Alone," you can have a lovely cheese pizza, just for you, like Macaulay Culkin's Kevin McCallister character did.
Frank Gehry was known for designing the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Spain and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.
To celebrate the final season of the hit show, Replay Lincoln Park is hosting a "Stranger Things" pop-up.
The Chicago City Council will again take up its budget battle with Mayor Brandon Johnson at the full council meeting Wednesday.
The Chicago City Council will vote on whether to ban hemp products like Delta-8 and Delta-9.
Chicago police, along with friends and family, are looking for a South Side man who has been missing for two weeks since a car crash in Blue Island, Illinois.
Tony Dokoupil has been named anchor of the "CBS Evening News," the network announced Wednesday.
Shots were fired at two off-duty Cook County Sheriff's deputies outside Mount Sinai Hospital on Wednesday morning.
A Chicago Border Patrol officer is facing federal charges for allegedly sexually assaulting four women at Chicago area hotels while on the job in 2022.
Rylee Parker discovered his goldendoodle, Cooper, was missing after his car was ransacked while he validated his parking.
Chicago police shot and killed a man while investigating a stolen car in the Arcadia Terrace neighborhood on Tuesday night.
The city budget is a top priority as Chicago alderpeople prepare for Wednesday's City Council meeting, but the mayor and council are still far apart on a deal.
A Chicago woman battling ALS said she's been struggling just to get a disabled parking space in front of her Bridgeport home.
Days after new Cook County Chief Judge Charles Beach ordered an urgent review of the county's electronic monitoring program, Sheriff Tom Dart said this crisis isn't new, and that he's been warning lawmakers of problems for years.
Charles Beach was sworn in on Monday as Cook County's first new chief judge in 24 years, and takes over amid a political firestorm over what appears to be systemic issues with how accused criminals are being monitored before trial.
Some Chicagoans found out the hard way on Monday that the overnight winter parking ban is in effect.
The electronic monitoring system in Cook County has come under increased scrutiny, after a woman was set on fire in a horrific arson attack on the Blue Line, with critics demanding answers as to why the suspect wasn't already behind bars.
ISU knocked off No. 1-ranked and defending champion North Dakota State in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.
Daniel Hardy, Cole Kmet, and Kyle Monangai volunteered with the Salvation Army to serve a BBQ holiday meal to shelter residents and others in need.
The Chicago White Sox will have the first overall pick in the 2026 Major League Baseball draft.
Despite Sunday's loss and losing the top spot in the NFC North, fans said they're confident the Bears will bounce back.
Leo Carlsson scored two goals and rookie Beckett Sennecke had a goal and an assist in the Anaheim Ducks' 7-1 victory over the road-weary Chicago Blackhawks.
A man stood charged with attempted murder Tuesday in a shooting involving a Chicago police officer in the Morgan Park neighborhood this past weekend.
A man died after being with multiple gunshot wounds in an alley in Chicago's North Lawndale neighborhood early Tuesday morning.
The Federal Transit Administration is demanding that the CTA take immediate action to improve safety or risk losing funding.
A man has been charged with setting a fire in the apartment building where he lived to cover up the shooting death of his roommate last month in Cicero, Illinois.
A man was charged with impersonating a police officer and other counts after a chain of events that led to gunfire from real police officers in Aurora, Illinois.
