Chicago-area transit agencies face a daunting budget gap if lawmakers fail to agree on a funding bill by the end of the current legislative session.
A last-minute amendment to an Illinois state bill transformed a proposal to legalize the ‘Idaho stop’ into an 804-page transit omnibus bill, reports Austin Busch for Streetsblog Chicago.
“The new SB2111 introduces the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA) as a replacement for the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA), and makes several notable changes to the status quo,” Busch explains. The changes include a lower farebox recovery ratio, a new cross-jurisdictional law enforcement task force and safety-specific staff, a Transit Integration Policy Development Committee aimed at integrating transit and highway planning, requirements to add sidewalks to transit stops during roadway projects, and more.
The bill also includes language that supports transit-oriented development (TOD), requires fare capping, and introduces service standards and performance measures for funding distribution. “Additionally, the proposed bill completely refashions how the board of the regional oversight agency is composed as well as each of the three transit agency boards.”
If the legislature doesn’t pass a transit bill by the end of the current session on May 31, transit agencies will have to plan their 2026 budget without assurance of additional funding.
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