Illinois lawmakers recently voted to end the practice of suspending driver’s licenses due to unpaid automated traffic enforcement tickets, according to a report from ProPublica’s Melissa Sanchez Tens of thousands of Illinois residents would see their driving privileges restored under the legislation which was passed as part of a broader criminal justice reform package. The bill bars cities from seeking license suspension from drivers who have five or more unpaid speeding or red-light camera tickets. Additionally, the previous practice of barring drivers from renewing their licenses over unpaid traffic fines will end.
The timing of the legislation feels right given the hard economic times we are in due to COVID-19. Just two years ago ProPublica reported on Black motorists on Chicago’s South and West sides making up a disproportionate amount of people harmed by license suspensions over unpaid tickets. The report was part of a series on how the poor have been burdened by the cit
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 beco
Ever since the Nixon era, Far South Siders have been asking for the Red Line, which currently stops at 95th Street, to be extended south to the city limits. They got some good news yesterday, as the CTA passed a milestone for winning roughly $1 billion in federal funding needed for the $2.3 billion project. But in a somewhat frustrating development, the earliest potential start date for train service on the route, originally slated for 2026, has been postponed until 2029.
As reported by the Chicago Sun-Times’ Stefano Esposito, the CTA announced on Monday that the Federal Transit Administration has granted preliminary approval for the 5.6-mile addition, which will go as far south as 130th Street, serving the Altgeld Gardens housing project. However, the transit agency also shared the bad news of the three-year service launch delay, explaining that the 2026 start date was a “preliminary” estimate based on “limited information.” The CTA needs to finalize the project’s envir
It’s getting real folks. After many years of lobbying by transit advocates, next month Cook County is launching the Fair Transit South Cook pilot. The program will bring more affordable and convenient service on the Metra Electric District and Rock Island District commuter rail lines for South Side and south suburban residents. The pilot halves the cost of a ride on these lines, and increases frequency on Pace’s 352-Halsted route, which links the 95th Street Red Line stop with the Pace Chicago Heights Terminal and will eventually be upgraded to Pulse express bus service.
I caught up with Cook County president Toni Preckwinkle to discuss the history of this effort, its benefits for South Side and Southland residents, and the city of Chicago’s resistance to participating in the program by providing free, county-subsidized transfers from Metra to the CTA.
The TransitCenter foundation estimates that Chicagoland transit will be getting $486 million in stimulus funds.
Chicagoland transit agencies suffering massive ridership and revenue losses during the COVID-19 have made it through 2020 relatively unscathed due to the first round of federal stimulus funding, the CARES Act. But to have sufficient funding for next year, without having to resort to service cuts, fare hikes, and/or layoffs, they’ve been counting on the calvary to arrive in the form of a second pandemic relief package with money for public transportation.
Fortunately, after months of obstruction by the Republicans, Congress is finally set to vote on another $900 billion pandemic stimulus bill, which includes transit funding. The $14 billion earmarked for all public transportation across the nation in the new legislation is less than half of the $32 billion transit agencies and advocates were pushing for to prevent service cuts. These reductions would disproportionately i