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Regional Performance Measures
The RTA staff has undertaken the development of a performance measurement and reporting program to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of public transit in Northeastern Illinois. Performance measures have been established in coordination with the CTA, Metra, and Pace. The RTA also conducted a series of workshops on performance measurement with regional public officials and stakeholders to gather their perspectives. It is the goal of the RTA to use the performance measurement program to provide regional decision-makers and the public a clearer understanding of how effectively and efficiently their tax dollars are being used in support of public transportation. Reports will be posted on the RTA website as they become available.
Performance Measures
Regional performance is examined in five major areas: service coverage, service efficiency and effectiveness, service delivery, service maintenance and capital investment, and service level solvency. Within each area, a series of measures have been identified to provide a comprehensive view of performance in that area and develop an understanding of factors causing changes in performance trends.
2010 Regional Report Card Results
The “2010 Regional Report Card” covers the 2006 – 2010 period, using data reported to the National Transit Database. Overall, the performance measures in the report show many positive trends for the RTA region when viewed over the full five-year period but show declines in performance in 2009 and 2010 resulting from the regional and national economic downturn that began in 2008.
After peaking in 2009, transit capacity was reduced through the implementation of service cuts in 2010. Passenger trips, which had peaked in 2008 prior to the economic downturn and coincided with record high gas prices, were lower in 2009 and again in 2010, although the 2010 ridership losses were less pervasive. Still, the region saw overall ridership increases of 2.9% over 2006 levels, and passenger miles traveled were 1.3% higher in 2010 compared to 2006. Service efficiency and effectiveness measures have shown improvement, although this has occurred as a result of service cuts and not solely cost-cutting measures. Service solvency measures have improved somewhat, as a result of fare increases at CTA and Pace in 2009, as well as the receipt of federal stimulus money and CTA bond fund proceeds. Service maintenance and capital investment measures have also shown improvement, with the elimination of hundreds of older vehicles, resulting in fewer vehicles in service beyond their useful life and improved mileage between major mechanical failures. Capital investment increased significantly in 2010; however, the RTA asset condition study indicates that there is an unmet critical need for capital infusion over the next ten years to bring the region’s transit infrastructure up to a state of good repair.
2010 Sub-Regional Report
The sub-regional report, first published in 2009, separates data by agency (CTA, Metra, and Pace) and also reports data based on travel mode (city bus, ‘L’, commuter rail, suburban bus, dial-a-ride, vanpool, and ADA paratransit). The purpose of this report is to analyze the components of the regional measures to better understand their impact on overall performance and to understand the trends in performance of each operating agency compared to its own previous performance. Caution should be exercised in making comparisons between the modes because of the significantly different operating characteristics and infrastructure requirements of each mode.
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Other Initiatives 
