Transit advocates breathed a sigh of relief yesterday when Congress passed a new stimulus bill earmarking an estimated $486 million for Chicagoland public transportation, saving the CTA, Metra, and Pace from what CTA president Dorval Carter Jr. previously called a “beyond-doomsday” scenario. However, the total national bailout for public transportation only totaled $14 billion, less than half of the $32 billion agencies and advocates were pushing for. Representatives of these organizations were quick to note that we’re not out of the woods yet, and more federal funding will be needed to prevent future service cuts, fare hikes, and/or layoffs.
With the incoming transit-friendly Biden-Harris administration, and a possible Democratic takeover of the Senate pending the Georgia runoffs, there’s reason to be optimistic that more aid for public transportation will materialize next year. But what if the calvary don’t show up in the form of additional funding, and service cuts become inevitable — how do we make sure they don’t disproportionately impact the most vulnerable Chicagoland residents?