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10/25/2021
The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) has proposed a $1.75 billion operating budget for 2022 the agency believes would takes steps to help ensure public transit remains a crucial part of the city’s continuing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The proposed spending plan would maintain all rail and bus services "the region has relied on during the recovery," CTA officials said in a press release. The plan also reflects a major realignment of fares and passes to better meet changing ridership patterns due to the pandemic.
Although ridership grew throughout 2021, it remains at roughly half of pre-pandemic levels, CTA officials said. The one/three/seven-day pass-price promotion, launched in May, generated more than 10 million rides over the summer months. In 2022, the CTA expects to build on promotional fares and make permanent the price reductions on its most popular unlimited-ride passes.
Next year, the agency also plans to open an Office of Innovation to focus on the evolving mobility industry, new technologies and practices, and new ways to improve the rider experience. Additionally, the agency expects to launch a new Department of Equity and Inclusion to expand upon the CTA’s efforts toward promoting opportunity, employment, training and economic development.
A virtual public hearing on the proposed operating budget will be held Nov. 11.
The CTA's 2022-2026 Capital Improvement Program, which is separate from the agency’s operating budget, calls for $3.5 billion worth of projects over the next five years.