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The CTA is at a crossroads as dysfunction has become synonymous with the service it provides. Trains and buses are running far less frequently, City Council leaders are routinely calling on the mayor to replace its leadership and the agency is facing a fiscal cliff with pandemic aid soon running dry. Transit organizers believe reforming the CTA board is essential for getting the system back on track.
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
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There are no George Krambles transit professionals on the CTA Board of Directors. George was a railroader who knew how to make the trains run, even under trying circumstances like the Blizzards of 1977-1979. Converts to the Religion of Climate would do well to notice that the Climate Clerics always begin their records after the cold years of 1973-1983, particularly cold years during which Krambles helped guide the CTA. George Krambles frequently rode the L and forgot more about how to run the CTA than any of the current family and pals board will glean in their lifetimes. The RTA… Read more »
You could train a bunch of monkeys to do the job they are doing, and the monkeys would do a better job.
The current board are proud members of the
Usual group of idiots in Illinois politics
Patronage jobs. $25K for the board members and $50K for the board president. Nice side gig for pals and payoffs.
Yes, it’s a spoils system for the Democrat Party. There isn’t a single white person on the CTA board despite whites being the largest demographic group in the city of Chicago. The board is all BIPOC people with no experience in transportation. This is just another reminder that Chicago no longer belongs to you or your ancestors who actually built this city over 150 years since the Great Chicago fire. It’s their city now, and they don’t care if you’ve been here since the 1800’s, even though they’ve only been here, like in Lori Lightfoot’s case, since the 1980’s. Inclusiveness… Read more »
And don’t forget the pay– $25k per year– plus accruing generous pension and healthcare benefits even after only a small number of years. It is a sweet gig, which is why Board members never have a thought independent of City Hall or the Gov’s office.
Are there any plain old straight white males in any position of power in the CTU/Brandon administration?
No, that’s not what this board’s role is…to actually work?…no, their job is do as little as possible and collect their check.
When lunatics are in charge you get lunatic policies. This applies across the board to the entirety of Illinois government.
Hmm, I think a privatization opportunity is available. Let’s do this the same way we sold off other city assets like parking or toll revenue.
Auction off the rights to operate the CTA as a private enterprise. Ok to bust the union if it results in a higher sale price. Use the proceeds to fund a wage increase for the CTU and guaranteed annual income to members of the community.
No one would take it. The private insurance alone would make a private CTA a money loser.
A private CTA would be run akin to the Illinois Tollway, the suburban jobs program for family and pals.