Here Come The Scare Tactics

[sw4400]

This is not how to solve budget issues! All your doing is forcing people to think about carpools or buying a car and giving a finger to the CTA. But I guess it hasn't occured to Huberman that without passengers, there wouldn't be a CTA!

http://www.suntimes.com/news/transportatio...S-cta30.article

If something like this should get implemented because Huberman doesn't get "his way", then I know this rider will probably do a lot more walking or carpooling in the future, and possibly many of you chicagobus.org members as well.

[Busjack]

The few sites that were tracking Amended HB 1841, primarily Sick Transit Chicago, indicated that a bill with the RTA reforms, tax increases, and funding formula changes, was in the works a couple of days ago. I figured that the bill (now SB 572) would solve the problem as much as anything this year would (although I do not personally agree with increasing suburban Cook County taxes). Julie Hamos and Sid Mathias, of the House Committee in charge were on Illinois Lawmakers on Wednesday and indicated that it was on track. Also Mayor Daley said on the radio that that bill was the only game in town, so pass it. Thus, I think the real fear mongering is in the press.

That said, it appears that once the legislature hit the May 31st deadline without doing anything on a myriad of issues, gridlock set in. One of two things can happen--the politicians can come to their senses and get the job done, or they can wait until July 1st and then everything in this state will fall apart. For instance, I noted a comment on Ask Carole that a legislator from Peoria has no interest in the CTA, but what that commentator did not mention is that the Peoria legislator is surely concerned about the rate freeze bill (do you care about Ameren?) and one of the downstate members of the Senate has held the state budget hostage to that issue. The gov has the legislators in suspension because they think he will veto anything that doesn't include his health care plan or does include increased sales taxes (which the RTA bill does). And, as previously noted, it hasn't helped that the problem has been studied for two years, but the RTA did not present a tax plan until the last week of May, and the CTA did not present a pension reform bill until a couple of weeks ago.

Also, Daley has to do more than just say it is the legislature's problem, since only he dictates who runs CTA. And while the RTA Act does require a balanced budget, trainman has previously discussed how the doomsday plans were poorly conceived. Thus, I don't believe Ron that this one is not a political ploy.

But I agree with both you and buslover88 that it would be a good idea to walk.

[redlinerider]

I just had to register to reply to this.

This is not a scare tactic, that's the budget and cuts they will NEED to do to stay afloat if the bill does not pass. It's the reality of the situation. The money won't come out of thin air, cuts have to be made, they're raising fares and cutting service. They're firing CTA employees if they can't fix the already flawed funding formula.

The funding formula that dates back to 1983 was supposed to be temporary; it was never fixed. The state needs to own up and pass the bill to give the permanent funding solution that was never presented when it should have been.

[Buslover88]

This is not a scare tactic

Apparently you don't know how much people are afraid of these cuts.

the politicians can come to their senses and get the job done, or they can wait until July 1st and then everything in this state will fall apart.

I totally agree on you with that, Busjack. These damn polictians don't care about the poor in Chicago. We NEED the CTA for our daliy lives. The polictians have a cloud over there head or something. If you're a polictian reading this, this is an emergency right now in Chicago and the surrounding areas! I don't feel like saying anything else more at the moment, so i'll stop here.

[redlinerider]

Apparently you don't know how much people are afraid of these cuts.

I totally agree on you with that, Busjack. These damn polictians don't care about the poor in Chicago. We NEED the CTA for our daliy lives. The polictians have a cloud over there head or something. If you're a polictian reading this, this is an emergency right now in Chicago and the surrounding areas! I don't feel like saying anything else more at the moment, so i'll stop here.

Well of course service cuts scare people, but those cuts aren't there for show; it's what the CTA is going to have to do to keep providing service.

[Busjack]

Well of course service cuts scare people, but those cuts aren't there for show; it's what the CTA is going to have to do to keep providing service.

While the service cuts may not be for show (as I acknowledged that the RTA Act requires a balanced budget), CTA repeatedly presenting the "Sunday Only" plan is. As trainman pointed out, why kill routes with high productivity (the rush hour is scheduled to run above capacity), deny service to certain areas, but not eliminate the competition with Pace on Harlem? If it were a rational plan, such as the cutbacks in 1997, that would be different. But the last two Doomsday plans were politically motivated, even though there is a budget issue.

All I have read so far is that this was the "least worst" (or as others say "worser") plan than raising fares to $7, eliminating L service on all lines except Red and Blue, etc. But I haven't heard that there was any analysis of what routes should be cut, as there was 2 years ago.

Hearing Daley yesterday, I believe that he was more perturbed that the Democrats couldn't solve the issue while they could still exclude the Republicans than that the issue wasn't yet solved. Thus, this is political, but between the various Democrat factions.

If you don't believe there is posturing occuring, look at the Tribune article on Skokie Swift to gain a stop in Evanston?:

South Evanston residents mostly favor a new station on the CTA's Yellow Line but have concerns about noise, traffic and crime, according to study findings unveiled at a public meeting last week.

...

Late in the meeting a resident noted that the CTA had announced possible service cuts on the Purple and Yellow Lines.

Akbar, though, said that was merely a "contingency plan" the CTA had to submit to the Regional Transportation Authority.

"We're hoping this doesn't happen," he said.

Why continue planning on a line that CTA has said it would shut down, despite the millions of federal funds invested in it? Does CTA think it will get more New Start money if it throws away its first demonstration project, because it doesn't run on Sunday? Not even the last Doomsday plan suggested that.

[Busjack]

To further demonstrate that the Sunday scenario is posturing, the list includes routes subsidized by employers, including X98, and 168 to 192, except 171 and 172. Does CTA really intend to break those contracts? Again, the 2005 Doomsday scenario didn't include those routes.

[Buslover88]

Does CTA really intend to break those contracts?

Since most of the people who are running it are idiots, I think they are in fact they are intending to do just that.

[RJL6000]

While the service cuts may not be for show (as I acknowledged that the RTA Act requires a balanced budget), CTA repeatedly presenting the "Sunday Only" plan is. As trainman pointed out, why kill routes with high productivity (the rush hour is scheduled to run above capacity), deny service to certain areas, but not eliminate the competition with Pace on Harlem? If it were a rational plan, such as the cutbacks in 1997, that would be different. But the last two Doomsday plans were politically motivated, even though there is a budget issue.

All I have read so far is that this was the "least worst" (or as others say "worser") plan than raising fares to $7, eliminating L service on all lines except Red and Blue, etc. But I haven't heard that there was any analysis of what routes should be cut, as there was 2 years ago.

Hearing Daley yesterday, I believe that he was more perturbed that the Democrats couldn't solve the issue while they could still exclude the Republicans than that the issue wasn't yet solved. Thus, this is political, but between the various Democrat factions.

If you don't believe there is posturing occuring, look at the Tribune article on Skokie Swift to gain a stop in Evanston?:Why continue planning on a line that CTA has said it would shut down, despite the millions of federal funds invested in it? Does CTA think it will get more New Start money if it throws away its first demonstration project, because it doesn't run on Sunday? Not even the last Doomsday plan suggested that.

The revised Doomsday plan that the CTA approved now has the CTA eliminating 39 bus routes (including routes 19, X80 and 130, which were not included in the original May 2007 Doomsday plan), but retaining Yellow Line and Purple Line Express service and some of the non-Sunday bus routes which were targeted for elimination in the May Doomsday plan. Bus and rail fares will increase to $2.50, and $3.00 for rush-period rail service -- while transfers will increase from 25 cents to 50 cents. A fare paid with the Chicago Card will also increase to $2.00. And Purple Line trains operating to/from the Loop will become a bit or a lot less express under the new plan: Purple Line trains will stop at Sheridan, and some may run all stops north of Sheridan (depending on how crowded the Red Line trains are).

[geneking7320]

The revised Doomsday plan that the CTA approved now has the CTA eliminating 39 bus routes (including routes 19, X80 and 130, which were not included in the original May 2007 Doomsday plan), but retaining Yellow Line and Purple Line Express service and some of the non-Sunday bus routes which were targeted for elimination in the May Doomsday plan. Bus and rail fares will increase to $2.50, and $3.00 for rush-period rail service -- while transfers will increase from 25 cents to 50 cents. A fare paid with the Chicago Card will also increase to $2.00. And Purple Line trains operating to/from the Loop will become a bit or a lot less express under the new plan: Purple Line trains will stop at Sheridan, and some may run all stops north of Sheridan (depending on how crowded the Red Line trains are).

Don't forget - when the Cubs are playing the Purple Line "express" stops at Sheridan currently.

When I read this latest plan I questioned the frequency of Purple trains to the Loop. I got the impression they would not have consistent hours. It looked as though the decision to run the trains to the Loop would be based on the performance of the Red Line.