In wake of a stabbing on a CTA train early Friday morning, the agency’s leadership has heard rising calls for increased safety measures on buses and trains. NBC Chicago’s Charlie Wojciechowski reports.
Embattled Chicago Transit Authority President Dorval Carter laid out a bold vision for the future of the transit agency in a plan that will depend on funding from state legislators.
In a presentation to City Club Thursday, Carter described his “Back to the Future” plan to make the CTA a world-class public transportation provider.
The includes increased frequency for existing routes and new routes that would not require riders to first venture into the city only to venture out again on a different line to get to their destinations. He wants to see the CTA as vital and necessary as it was back in the 1960s.
“We are really at a crossroads about what the future of public transportation is going to look like,” Carter said. “The real question is, is the state legislature prepared to make the decisions they need to make to make that decision a reality?”
Before his speech, Carter acknowledged the four people shot to death on a CTA train four weeks ago in Forest Park and a CTA employee who was shot a day later while on the job.
“You have to keep in mind that CTA doesn’t create crime on the system; doesn’t create the things we are talking about,” Carter said. “They come out of the communities that we serve.”
Carter blamed outdated state funding formulas for the CTA’s problems and dismissed calls to unify the agency with Metra, Pace and other regional transit providers, opining that the problem is not with management.
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However, in recent months, Carter has come under fire for not addressing current CTA ridership and safety problems with 20 Chicago City Council members, with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker calling for his ouster as well.
Carter said any decisions about his future will be made by Mayor Brandon Johnson and other officials and not by him.
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"I am committed to doing whatever I can to keep the CTA operating and moving forward," Carter said.
Carter acknowledged the $750 million fiscal cliff the agency is facing in 2026, while adding that the agency can assemble enough funding in the meantime.
Carter did not offer a price tag for his plan.
"Let’s be clear, what I laid out here will cost a lot of money, but the question that the state legislature needs to grapple with is, what kind of commitments do they want to make to get to where they want to be?" he said.
In the meantime, riders like Bree Miller remain concerned about safety on the system.
“I only ride it during rush hour or when I have to,” she said Friday outside the Washington and Wells stop where a man was stabbed twice this morning. The suspect in that case is still being sought.
Miller said she would like to see a greater security presence on the CTA and suggests that it make use of metal detectors, something she said is already happening at some schools.
