February 2008 Archives

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

REDEYE'S GOING PUBLIC: Public transit problem solvers

Posted by Leonor Vivanco - 3:07 p.m., Monday, Feb. 25

When my Blue Line train passes the Metra billboard "We're on time. Are you?" I wonder if Metra is asking CTA riders or expressway drivers.

The answer for both riders and drivers is probably "no."

It got me thinking about slogans since the Metra message seems to always catch my attention no matter  how many times I see it.

Does the CTA have an official slogan? If you believe wikipedia, it says the slogan is "Take It Everywhere." The words on my Chicago Card are on-time, clean, safe and friendly.

What are some more appropriate slogans for the CTA? How about "We'll Get You There - Eventually" or "Wait It Out."

Share some of your suggestions with us. What did you come up with?

Posted by Leo - 12:15 p.m., February 25

Just saw a CTA bus get into a fender-bender this morning. It happened right in front of me as I approached Michigan Ave. on the corner between Tribune Tower and the Hotel Intercontinental.

It wasn't a bad wreck--the bus (a No. 147) was rolling up behind a cab and gave the cabbie's rear fender a love tap when the taxi came to a stop to allow a pedestrian to cross. No one was hurt, from what I could see.

But with all the anxiety bus riders have had to live with the last three months, and all the delays they put up with daily, is there any worse inconvenience than having to get off a bus and wait for the next one because of a fender-bender at 5 mph?

It seems to me it's the most annoying of all reasons to be delayed on a bus trip, breakdowns included. Then again--knock on wood--I haven't yet been on a bus that stops so the driver can make a fast-food run.

Posted by Ebony Haynes – 3:00 p.m., Feb. 22

OK, so I hate getting off of work and having to wait for my bus in the cold. It usually takes about 15-20 minutes for my bus to show up and by then I am freezing and can barely take my U-pass out of my purse. So everyday before I leave work, I wonder will it be a slow day?

Honestly, I can never tell because some days its come right on time. I have already checked the bus schedule and I know what time it is supposed to be there. But I have spent too many days in the cold, shivering, waiting on my bus to come.

I know this may seem petty but it has become a huge problem with me. It just seems never ending. If it aint one thing, it's another. I hate being cold, I hate the snow and I hate when my bus is slow!

What are some of the petty issues you complain about when it comes to the CTA? Come on spill the beans!

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

TRIBUNE: Cook-DuPage corridor project would extend Blue Line

SUN-TIMES: Blue Line extension to Lombard in RTA's sights

CTA TATTLER: The straight dope on CTA pension and retiree health care reform

CTA TATTLER: Why can't Purple Line stop at Sheridan?

ASK CAROLE: Purple Line and the Sheridan station

NBC-Ch. 5: Weekend Track Work To Slow CTA Trains

Posted by Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz – 3:20 p.m., Feb. 21

Kyra’s post yesterday about how she’s been paying the full $2 fare on buses recently to avoid walking to an “L” station to reload her card inspired me to make my own incredibly embarrassing admission: I’ve been taking the “L” every day for almost two years, and I don’t even have a Chicago Card.

I have no good excuse for such a blatant disregard for my own money, so I won’t even try to justify it. But in case there’s anyone else out there who has been putting off getting a Chicago Card for way too long, here’s a little math to serve as motivation.

I’ve been taking the “L” to and from work every weekday since March of 2006, paying the full $2 every time. That’s $20 per week, for about 100 weeks, meaning I’ve spent $2,000 on commuting since I started this job.

With the Chicago Card, you pay $1.75 per ride. So for the 100 weeks I’ve been commuting, I would have paid $1,750. Plus, you get an extra $2 for every $20 you add to the card. So that means I would have gotten a bonus $175 in rides.

The Chicago Card would have saved me $425 over the past couple of years in commuting costs alone. $425! That’s more than enough for a plane ticket to somewhere warm. And it doesn’t even take into account all the other times I’ve used public transportation, or all the time I’ve spent – and trains I’ve missed -- trying to slide bills into the machines rather than have my Chicago Card automatically reload.

You are welcome, CTA, for helping to fill your financial hole with my procrastination. But as I write this, I’m submitting my online order form for my shiny new Chicago Card Plus. It’s about time.

Posted by Tracy Swartz- 12:20 p.m., Feb. 19

I recently got hit by a bus.

I was waiting to cross Michigan Avenue when a CTA bus rushed by, spraying murky water on the sidewalk. I jumped out of the way, but some of the water hit my pants.

This is my first Chicago winter, so this Floridian is trying to quickly learn about salt on the sidewalks, walking on ice and protecting my clothes from Old Man Winter.

Unfortunately, the CTA is not helping. I feel like I have to hide behind the bus shelter to avoid the tidal wave a bus creates when it pulls up to the bus stop.

Any tips or hints on how to avoid the CTSpray?

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

RedEye's Going Public: With Doomsday behind us, it’s time to clean up

CTA Tattler: Seeking permanent prison break

Ask Carole: Sunday, March 30th

Posted by Leonor Vivanco - 1:57 p.m., Monday, Feb. 18

As much as riders, including myself, complain about the CTA, I must give them props for trying to improve it.

Last week, Mayor Daley announced a $227 million project to give us commuters a better ride.

Here are the top three parts of the plan I am most excited about:

*Eliminating slow zones. Those zones not only add time to my commute, but also frustrate me because it seems to take forever to get to my destination. Please, hurry on this one.

*Overhauling outdated buses and trains.  I can't stand being on a bus that breaks down and having to squeeze onto the next bus on my route.

*Being able to use credit or debit cards on the fare vending machines. Finally, the CTA is catching on. This will help me avoid last week's situation of missing my train because I didn't have enough money on my card or cash in my wallet. Being able to use my debit card would've also saved me a walk to the nearest ATM.

Mayor Daley said the goal is "improving the customer experience." And I think this plan does that.

Tell us what you think. Is there anything else you'd like to see done to improve the CTA?

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

SUN TIMES: Alderman grilled CTA, then abstained

CTA TATTLER: There's hope in CTA's $227 million capital plan

Posted by Ebony Haynes – 4:00 p.m., Feb. 15

You’ve been paying all your money, buying passes and Chicago cards and now it’s finally about to pay off. When? We still can’t say, but at least we have a little more information.

Yes, that’s right. Mayor Daley has challenged the CTA to work to produce on-time buses, cleaner and quieter trains, attractive shops in the rail stations and fare machines that accept credit cards.

Are you excited, because I know I am…NOT?

I mean, don’t get me wrong. I am very excited it sounds like a great plan. But the real question is when can we expect these changes? I don’t want to get my hopes up too high.

The other day I waited outside, in the cold, for 20 minutes for a bus that almost made me late for my appointment. And I don’t always have cash on me, so it would be great to be able to use my credit card, instead of spending an extra two dollars to take money out of the ATM.

Daley announced a $227 million project, to help improve the CTA to make it a better place for the dedicated riders.

I hope this project begins sometime soon, because the CTA has a lot of making up to do considering all it has put us through in the past few months. CTA riders have waited too long. Its time for a CTA revolution. Well maybe not that bizarre but it is time for a change.

How long do you think this "super" project will take?

Posted by Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz – 6:10 p.m., Feb. 14

The good news out of the CTA today was that Mayor Daley announced a $227 million program to "improve the customer experience" with new trains and buses, better lighting and safer doors, according to the Tribune.

That kind of funding commitment is a big deal, and it's good to hear real dollars applied to a lot rhetoric about CTA improvements. But I'm still coping with the bad CTA news that my commute will soon start sucking more than it already does.

Starting March 30, southbound Red Line service from the North Side to the Loop will be cut as the CTA closes down one of the tracks for construction related to the Brown Line platform expansion project, the Trib reported today. That means that during the morning rush, Red Line service will shrink from 19 trains to 15, and we will have to wait longer for trains to squeeze into.

At the same time, my "L" station -- the Brown Line Wellington stop -- will be closing, again for platform expansion (I take the Brown to the Red). CTA temporarily will reopen the Diversey stop to accomodate us Wellington orphans, but I fear I'm still in for longer waits on the Brown Line now, too -- not good when I tend to be late for everything anyways.

I'm done pouting about it -- other people have far worse commutes, I know -- and now hope to look at the longer commute as the glass half full. Now we'll have so much more time to practice essential CTA rider skills! Together! Packed like little sardines on slow-moving, infrequent trains! Sweet!

In the spirit of optimism, I'd like to come up with 10 suggestions for how to take advantage of that extra commuting time. I'm going to need your help, though, because I'm not that creative. Here are a few to start us off.

1. Sharpen your train surfing skills. That means you don't hold on to anything as the train rumbles and jerks along, until of course you lose your balance and end up holding on to a complete stranger.

2. Practice holding your breath so that you don't keel over from the rank odor of the unfortunate person you ended up plastered next to.

3. Master the art of reading with one hand. This is easy with a magazine. It is hard with an actual book.

4. Rehearse the conversation you would have if you actually were to approach that cute man or woman you see on the train every day. "Hey, so you work in the Loop? Yeah, me too." Check to see if he or she is wearing a wedding ring.

5. See how loud you can crank your iPod before you start getting nasty stares from people around you.

OK, your turn...

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

TRIBUNE: CTA construction to reduce North Side Red Line service

TRIBUNE: CTA Yellow Line to add weekend service

SUN-TIMES: Construction at Belmont, Fullerton to cause delays for L riders

CRAIN’S: Brown Line work to mean slower trains into Loop

WBBM-Ch. 2: CTA Construction Project To Slow Morning Rush

WLS-Ch. 7: CTA 'experiments' with weekend Yellow Line service

WBBM-AM 780: CTA Yellow Line To Get Weekend Service

SKOKIE REVIEW: Weekend Yellow Line service experiment

CTA PRESS RELEASE: Technology Investment to Generate $2.3 Million Annual Savings

CTA PRESS RELEASE: Eight Car Service to Begin on Brown Line with Next Phase of Three-Track

Posted by Kyra Kyles- 12:17 p.m., Feb. 13

Think the CTA is dirty? Well, you've got one person to thank: you. This according to a reader who wrote in requesting a reprieve in CTA-smack-talking about dirty "L" stations and shoddy shoveling efforts around bus stops. Take a look at this e-mail -- ripped from the "Going Public" inbox, and let me know what you think.

"In the Red Eye today (2/13/08), there is a picture of CTA President Ron Hubberman working with sub contractors cleaning snow off of platforms. My question is why isn't he working with the CTA employees that have been in place to do the job for years. A lot of these people work hard and don't get any respect from they're bosses or the public.

I read complaints from riders all the time about how dirty the CTA is, but I never hear about them complaining about the real problem. The Passenger (not all of them, but enough of them). Passengers every day throw garbage on the floor, even though they are standing next to a garbage can.

They graffiti every day, urinate constantly in the windbreakers (among other things), and the janitors in place have 2 sometimes 3 or 4 stations to clean. There is no way to keep up with the flow of traffic that goes through some of these stations.

So don't discredit all janitors, In fact compliment the ones you do see cleaning and understand that they aren't cleaning a tamed office building, they are dealing with the public."

Does he have a point, public transit peeps? Discuss amongst yourselves.

Posted by Tracy Swartz- 3:05 p.m., Feb. 12

The weather didn't ruin my commute today. It was ruined by the closing of the Grand Avenue bridge.

Because the bridge was closed, the No. 65 couldn't pick me up at the Grand Ave. stop near Blommer's Chocolate Factory. There was no sign on the bus stop about where the No. 65 was rerouted. So I walked to work in the snowfall.

Anyone have any idea where to find this kind of information? Should I have called the CTA main number?

Please help--this information could help save my time/spirit/pantlegs in the future.

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

*Do you write about the CTA on your blog, or do you know of a good CTA blog? Post a link in the comments section of this post!

REDEYE: Who knew the CTA was so inspirational?

CTA TATTLER: CTA office staff - including Ron - pitch in for big snow removal jobs

Posted by Kyra Kyles- 9:14 a.m., Feb. 12

In a new feature, we'll post any requests to retrieve items lost on the CTA. But that's not all.

If you've found something on the CTA and want to try and get it back to its rightful owners let us know about that as well. Send your emails to goingpublic@tribune.com or leave a comment below.

Michelle wrote to me:

"Please help! On the 147 today and was asked to let someone know when to get off for the Hancock Tower (Jan. 29 about 7:40 a.m). I said oh, next two stops.

The guy saw the building and rushed to get off dropping an expensive pair of leather gloves and a hat. I picked them up and tried to catch him, but the bus moved and by the time I got off a block later I couldn't find him.

I went into the Hancock building but didn't see him anywhere...I feel bad because he rushed off because I didn't tell him to get off the bus in time.

Could you maybe print this letter ? I'd love to be able to correct this and get these items back to this guys."

Consider it done, Michelle.

Posted by Jim Walsh 4:50 p.m., Feb. 11

Have you ever seen anyone get arrested on the CTA?

I did on Monday.

I was riding the Red Line about 1 a.m. when three young people came running through the car I was sitting in. I didn't really give it any thought because people pass between cars all the time—particularly, it seems, when it's late at night.

The weird thing, though, was that after those kids ran through the car the train slowed to a near crawl. It took us several minutes to go from Clark/Division to North/Clybourn. I thought something was broken.

Meanwhile, one of the kids comes back into my car and sits down. We roll into the North/Clybourn station and see about a dozen police officers waiting for us. Then the CTA conductor comes dashing down the platform to talk to the cops, and she's yelling descriptions of the three kids who were running through the cars. At this point, the kid sitting across from me (who was looking really nervous) gets up and tries to make a run for it. The cops immediately pounce on him and put him in cuffs—very "Law & Order" style.

The next thing I know, they're doing a sweep of the entire string of cars, looking for the other two. They apparently found them because the train started rolling again after about 10 minutes. The whole ordeal probably delayed me about half an hour, but I was no worse for the wear. At the very least, it was kind of interesting to watch.

Never a dull moment on the late-night Red Line.

Posted by Leonor Vivanco - 2:58 p.m., Monday, Feb. 11

"The CTA is committed to put 'rapid' back into rapid transit," CTA President Ron Huberman was quoted in a Tribune story.

I sure hope so. Those slow zones are dreadful, especially on the Blue Line. Believe it or not, I was excited to ride the CTA after moving back here from California where my commute to work kept me in my car for more than an hour. I soon realized my trip from the Montrose platform to Clark/Lake wasn't as quick as I had hoped.

It felt like the train often crawled toward downtown. So I wondered if it would be faster for me to drive downtown instead. Even with traffic on the expressway, driving still saved me time.

The Trib's story says the CTA is working on cutting down slow zones. Well, it couldn't happen fast enough.

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

TRIBUNE: Family of woman killed by bus sues CTA

TRIBUNE: CTA slow zones have travel times back on the rise

SUN-TIMES: Family suing CTA bus driver in woman's death

WBBM-Ch. 2: Family Sues CTA After Bus Driver Kills Loved One

WMAQ-Ch. 5: Man Found Dead On CTA Train

WMAQ-Ch. 5: Family Seeks Witnesses To Woman's Death By Bus

WLS-Ch. 7: Autopsy planned for man found dead on train at O'Hare

Posted by Ebony Haynes – 12:00 p.m., Feb. 8

So if you haven’t already received the news all seniors, 65 and older, have been granted their free rides on the CTA and now they've granted free rides to disabled vets as well.

I just have a question: What is the true reason for granting the free rides to these select groups? Do they all really need free rides? And why to only seniors and vets? Why not single mothers? Children? Those who are handicapped? Oh and my favorite college students?

OK, you got me. Yes, I’m a college student and I’m pretty poor considering I’m paying my school all the money I do have. So last semester when I lost my U-Pass it was like the most miserable day in my life, not to mention week. When I finally decided to buy a new one they charged me 40 whole dollars for a U-Pass that I could only use for 3 weeks. (And that 40 dollars was hard to make reappear.) So why can't I get free rides from the CTA?

Let me stop complaining, after all I do get a "free" U-Pass for the entire school year, which they take out of my thousands of dollars in tuition and that costs $40 if lost or stolen. But I do know people that don't get “free” u-passes and it adds up for us poor college students.

So basically, I want an explanation better than the one they’ve been dishing out. I mean I can get a bus ticket home on the Megabus for one dollar and I live in Milwaukee. So why should I be charged more for a ride to work when I’m just as broke as anyone else who gets free rides.

Like they say if you do it for one person, you have to do it for the next. I mean seniors already get cheaper movies, meals and special discounts everywhere else they go. Don't get me wrong I don’t have anything against the cool old people who get free rides on the CTA, more power to them. I guess I'm a little jealous. That’s all!

What are your thoughts about free rides? What’s next in the wonderful world of the CTA?

Posted by Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz – 1:00 p.m., Feb. 7

It's official! With the City Council's passage of the real estate transfer tax hike yesterday, the CTA bailout is complete.

For apartment renters like me, who didn't know that a real estate transfer tax existed until it came up in the context of the CTA bailout, it's easy to sit back in one of those new bright blue upholstered seats on the "L" and forget the CTA ever had a funding crisis. (How nice are those new seats, by the way? Snagging one of those makes even the crappiest day better.)

But it's a bittersweet victory when you think of the people shouldering the burden. The transfer tax will climb $900 for a $300,000 home -- which can't be good when it's so hard to sell a home these days anyway. As Ald. Bernard Stone (50th) said in the Tribune's story today: "Congress is trying to encourage the economy [with tax rebates], and we are trying to pull it back."

Meantime, of course, seniors will be getting free rides and now a couple of alderman have successfully added a provision requiring the CTA to give free rides to disabled veterans and active military personnel before it can tap into the transfer tax revenue. They're still trying to figure out if they can give vets free rides without state approval.

With hindsight being so nice a clear, what do you think about how the CTA funding plan was hatched? Are you happy with how things turned out or do you think it could have been completed differently?

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

CHICAGO TRIBUNE: City tax hike puts cap on CTA bailout

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: Realty transfer tax hike gives seniors a break

WBBM-Ch. 2: CTA Working To Reduce Frustrating 'Bus Bunching'

WBBM-Ch. 2: Drama Between Daley, Aldermen Over Tax Plan

CTA TATTLER: Aldermen try to "Blago" property transfer tax before OK'ing it

Posted by Kyra Kyles- 5:25 p.m., Feb. 6

I know that it's easy to throw salt on the game of the CTA bus operators who blow past us at stops, bark at us about our malfunctioning fare cards, or seem to let the bus rock forward just when we're trying to take a seat.

Still, I must send this transit Valentine out to a No.65-Grand driver who kindly stopped close to the curb for me on an icy, icky day and after accidentally passing my desired stop, let me out at the next intersection.

It was just an extra ounce of much-needed niceness on a day I'd just as soon skip on the calendar.

Got any nice driver stories?

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

REDEYE: CTA rules, rail cars on riders' minds

CHICAGO TRIBUNE: Daley opposes aldermen seeking to influence CTA, force plastic-bag recycling

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: Daley to Council: Approve transfer tax to help CTA

Posted by Tracy Swartz- 12:55 p.m., Feb. 5

I live in the Wicker Park area, and it seems like everytime I turn on the TV, Sen. Iris Martinez and Rep. Rich Bradley are sparring in ads about who did what to secure funding for the CTA.

I don't live in that Senate district, so those ads don't do much for me except serve as annoying fillers between reruns of "America's Next Top Model."

But it got me wondering, how much will the CTA strife play in your voting decision today? Will you vote against an incumbent who wasn't vocal about the need for CTA money?

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

REDEYE: (A few) CTA mysteries solved

CHICAGO TRIBUNE: City panel delays vote on CTA real estate tax

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: Committee wants strings attached before agreeing on real estate tax increase

CTA TATTLER: Vote with the transit mess in mind on Election Day

Posted by Leonor Vivanco - 1:28 p.m., Monday, Feb. 4

As much as I get frustrated with the CTA, its doomsday scenarios, long rides through slow zones, etc., I am grateful the CTA exists, especially during the snow storm we had on Friday.

I counted on the CTA to get me to O'Hare in the morning rush hour traffic when cars were stacked on the expressway or sliding down side streets.

The CTA didn't fail me. In a matter of minutes, I boarded a warm train and got to the airport quickly so I could make my flight. Had there been no CTA, there's no doubt I would've missed my flight and been unable to escape the treacherous weather.

Now if only O'Hare would be as dependable as the CTA was in bad weather...

Posted by Jimmy Greenfield

Scanning the local papers, TV and radio stations, and blogs for CTA news and views.

CHICAGO TRIBUNE: CTA plans to complete escalator renovations in 2008 (Tribune graphic)

CHICAGO TRIBUNE: 32,000 Illinois seniors have signed up for free rides, governor's office says

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: Brown, Purple lines lose power

WBBM-Ch. 2: Thousands Sign Up For Free Transit Rides

CTA TATTLER: Real estate lobby ramps up campaign against CTA property transfer tax hike