Where Chicago Isn’t the Second City

[Pedestrian]

By William A. Galston
Nov. 28, 2017 6:52 p.m. ET

A lengthy exposé in the New York Times documented the consequences of shortsighted financial practices for the New York subways. Over the past two decades, maintenance investment stagnated as ridership nearly doubled. Efforts to add new lines have been stymied by construction costs five times the international average. Corrected for inflation, the city’s contribution to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority fell 75% since 1990 . . . .

But . . . in Chicago, which reports on-time performance of 96% and customer satisfaction in excess of 90%. Future-oriented investments have made all the difference. Since 2011, a third of existing rail lines and stations have been refurbished, three new stations have been built, and Chicago became the first city in the country to offer 4G service throughout its subway system.

Despite a cut in state funding, the Chicago Transit Authority’s 2018 operating budget will be in balance for the seventh consecutive year. On the heels of an $8 billion investment drive since 2011, the CTA is proposing a five-year capital budget of $2.7 billion.

The Windy City hasn’t achieved this level of performance without sacrifice. To fill the hole created by state budget cuts, the CTA raised fares for the first time in eight years. To finance an added $180 million in capital spending, Mayor Rahm Emanuel crafted a first-in-the-nation fee on ride-hailing services such as Uber and Lyft. The proceeds will be used to upgrade security at all CTA stations and reduce average trip times by up to 6 minutes . . . .

https://www.wsj.com/articles/where-c...ity-1511913175

[IrishIllini]

The fare increase is $0.25, making the bus $2.25 and the L $2.50.

[HowardL]

The infrastructure upgrades over the past few years have been the most unsexiest of projects but they have done wonders.

I've ridden the L for thirty-something years now and the experience is much, much better than the mid-1980's L. The L cars. Way better. General speed. Much better. Breakdowns. Way fewer.

CTA performed the unglamorous work that now enables me to play the São Paulo game under State Street. It goes like this. Walk down from the mezzanine to the platform on this end of the station. Start walking to the other end. If a train comes in and the doors open before you reach the opposite end of the platform, you win.

São Paulo circa 2010-ish put Chicago to shame. Not any more.

Most evenings, I enter the Howard L from the north end of the Jackson platform. A train has just pulled out. It's at Monroe now. Take a peak southward and I see a train pulling into Harrison and another L quick behind it at Roosevelt.

The L. It's fucking great.

[Crawford]

The author of that NY Times "expose" was Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel. In other words, fakenews.

Chicago-area transit is having a crisis of its own, with Metra continually cutting service and raising fares, and with overall transit ridership experiencing major ridership declines.

In any case, the L, while functional, and reasonably extensive, with third highest ridership in U.S., is probably the least pleasant major urban rail system in the U.S. Running outdoors on rickety wood platforms and in the middle of freeways, it's basically Exhibit A on how not to build urban rail.

[HowardL]

Originally Posted by Crawford

The author of that NY Times "expose" was Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel. In other words, fakenews.

Chicago-area transit is having a crisis of its own, with Metra continually cutting service and raising fares, and with overall transit ridership experiencing major ridership declines.

In any case, the L, while functional, and reasonably extensive, with third highest ridership in U.S., is probably the least pleasant major urban rail system in the U.S. Running outdoors on rickety wood platforms and in the middle of freeways, it's basically Exhibit A on how not to build urban rail.

Whoa ... dude ... when were you last here? 1982?

[LouisVanDerWright]

He's an idiot troll with a hate boner for Chicago. Add him to your ignore list. I only haven't because it's fun to watch him male a fool of himself in the other discussion threads by spouting total falsehoods and then getting called out on it.

[k1052]

Helps to have a mayor that actually rides the system and gives a shit about it. CTA rail is a lot better then when I first moved to the city over a decade ago. The bus system could use some attention now. How about some all door boarding, a ton more signal priority, and camera enforced bus lanes/stops.

NYCT is a great example of why a city should never ever give up total control of it's system to a state entity.

[cmmcnam2]

Originally Posted by Crawford

The author of that NY Times "expose" was Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel. In other words, fakenews.

Wrong expose: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/18/n...562580&ref=cta

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by Crawford

The author of that NY Times "expose" was Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel. In other words, fakenews.

Chicago-area transit is having a crisis of its own, with Metra continually cutting service and raising fares, and with overall transit ridership experiencing major ridership declines.

In any case, the L, while functional, and reasonably extensive, with third highest ridership in U.S., is probably the least pleasant major urban rail system in the U.S. Running outdoors on rickety wood platforms and in the middle of freeways, it's basically Exhibit A on how not to build urban rail.

Where is the "fake news" part?

Nothing in your grumblings contradicts anything here.

[MayorOfChicago]

I was going to say, when anyone starts talking about the L with "with rickety old wooden platforms" I just roll my eyes. As if platforms are creaking and collapsing or something.

I'm very impressed with the work done on the L since around 2006, it's SO much better than it was in the early 2000's when I first moved here.

Brown Line rebuilt, Blue Line heavily revamps on the O'Hare piece, Red Line south rebuilt, Red and Blue Line subway have had major work on stations and tracks, Red Line north getting ready to be rebuilt and Green and Orange had previously been rebuild or were new to begin with.

I think it's paid off to stop expansions and "pretty" stuff and focus on getting what's already there into good working order.

I certainly would call a lot of things in Illinois and in Chicago in "crisis", but honestly the CTA is one of the few I would say is NOT in crisis.

[LouisVanDerWright]

^^^ They are also rebuilding the UIC-Halsted and IMD Blue Line stops right now. They are about to add a third new stop to the Green Line by United Center. Improvements have abounded on the CTA since Rahm took office. I actually called the CTA a few weeks ago to get an access letter since I own property abutting an alley L. I thought "oh great, it's going to take me months to get through the bureaucracy and get this letter stating that I have a right to access MY property". I called a few numbers at the CTA and left VM's. Within a couple hours someone called me back and they had the letter out to me in a week. I made a comment about "you know how the city can be" to the fellow and he almost took offense to it saying something like "well we are NOT the city". He also walked me through other things I might need to talk to them about and how to do them in the future. Nothing like a little foresight from government employees! Now I know exactly who to call at the CTA if I need flagers on the tracks so I can tuckpoint my building where it is 6" from the train or if I want to build new construction on one of my lots. I was honestly shocked at how easy it was to work with them. The guy I originally called even went on vacation in the middle of helping me and someone else seamlessly took over and got me the letter on time.


Crawford is having a hard time keeping his exposes about how CTA is superior to MTA straight there are so many of them!

[electricron]

Originally Posted by LouisVanDerWright

Crawford is having a hard time keeping his exposes about how CTA is superior to MTA straight there are so many of them!

The NY Times should limit the subject of its editorials to NY City. There's plenty wrong in the nation's largest city. NY's MTA is just as guilty at raising fares and cutting services. This is just another great example of unwanted and unneeded silver spoons elite opinions spewing forth from the NY Times. What a joke.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by Crawford

The author of that NY Times "expose" was Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel. In other words, fakenews.

Chicago-area transit is having a crisis of its own, with Metra continually cutting service and raising fares, and with overall transit ridership experiencing major ridership declines.

In any case, the L, while functional, and reasonably extensive, with third highest ridership in U.S., is probably the least pleasant major urban rail system in the U.S. Running outdoors on rickety wood platforms and in the middle of freeways, it's basically Exhibit A on how not to build urban rail.

LOL!

This was written By BRIAN M. ROSENTHAL, EMMA G. FITZSIMMONS and MICHAEL LaFORGIA

All you had to do was click to see that.

[LouisVanDerWright]

Don't only the historic stations of the CTA have wood now? Like Quincy and the Brown line stations? Maybe Sheridan still has it? But that's about it.

[IrishIllini]

Originally Posted by HowardL

Whoa ... dude ... when were you last here? 1982?

Crawford hates anything that's not Manhattan. His comments are 99% BS. The L isn't perfect, but it doesn't the problems MTA does.

[skyscraper]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

https://www.wsj.com/articles/where-c...ity-1511913175

There is no way ridership of the subway has doubled, or even nearly that, in two decades. It may have increased but not doubled.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by skyscraper

There is no way ridership of the subway has doubled, or even nearly that, in two decades. It may have increased but not doubled.

Maybe not, but CTA rail ridership is up over 50% since 2001. Can't find any data any older than that.

[pip]

in 1993 the CTA gave 136 million rail rides
in 2016 the CTA gave 239 million rail rides

23 years almost double.

[Busy Bee]

Originally Posted by electricron

...just another great example of unwanted and unneeded silver spoons elite opinions spewing forth from the NY Times. What a joke.

Mkay. You forgot "Believe me!" and "SAD!"

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by pip

in 1993 the CTA gave 136 million rail rides
in 2016 the CTA gave 239 million rail rides

23 years almost double.

Thanks, couldn't find anything that old.