The CTA is citing a lack of state funding as the reason for potential major changes. According to an open letter from the CTA, “On September 16th, the CTA will be forced to implement a plan to increase fares, reduce service, and lay off more than 600 CTA employees.”
According to Ron Huberman, CTA President, the CTA has not been able to close the budget gap left by inflation, a shortfall of $110 million. He believes the Illinois General Assembly needs to take immediate action that will eliminate current deficits and address future inflationary issues.
Huberman goes on to say that the administrative cuts the CTA has thus far made only cover $38 million, about one third of what is needed. He says he has secured unprecedented agreements on pension and healthcare reforms with labor unions and made other cuts, but it is just not enough.
According to the open letter, “starting the morning of September 16th, fares will increase anywhere from $.50 to $1.00 on both bus and rail lines and bus service will be reduced by 8%. This means the suspension of 39 bus routes and the removal of 314 buses from our daily service.” The CTA encourages its ridership to contact their legislators regarding these issues and let them know how important CTA service is in their area.
For more details, call 1-888-YOUR-CTA (TTY: 1-888-CTA-TTY1) or visit transitchicago.com.