|
RTA Releases Regional Performance Measures |
 |
 |
 |
First-time report will guide transit agencies on where to focus improvements
CHICAGO - The Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) has released the 2007 Regional Performance Measures Report Card today in an effort to improve the transparency, accountability and overall service of the regional’s public transit system. The document is the first of its kind to be created and published by the agency.
“This report establishes a good baseline of measures that should over both the short and long-term, inform the public of our transit performance,” said Grace Gallucci, RTA Deputy Executive Director of Research, Analysis and Policy Development.
The Performance Measures Report Card was developed as part of the RTA’s oversight function to help manage the region’s public transit system. It evaluates service coverage, service efficiency and effectiveness, service delivery, service maintenance and capital investment, and service level solvency. Through aggregated data from the Chicago Transit Authority, Metra and Pace, the RTA and the region’s taxpayers will have a better sense of how these agencies are collectively meeting their mission, and thus the transit needs for the region.
RTA Executive Director Steve Schlickman found that the overall performance of the transit system is relatively good, but serious challenges still exist, primarily due to a lack of capital investment. The report highlights increases in the levels of service provided, as well as increases in ridership. It also demonstrates successful efforts to improve system maintenance.
“The Service Boards are doing a good job managing the current physical condition of our transit system despite gross underfunding,” Schlickman said. “They are making the repairs and replacing equipment as much as possible with available resources, but the report speaks to a larger issue at stake and that is the need for a capital bill.” The report also demonstrates the RTA’s accountability and transparency, he added.
In 2007, the RTA strategic plan, developed in partnership with the CTA, Metra and Pace identified a $10 billion need over five years for new state capital investments. With only one major state capital plan approved in 20 years (Illinois FIRST, 1999), the region’s system has been faced with challenges that include outdated equipment, deteriorating rail ties and tracks, and aging stations, resulting in slow zones and service issues.
The RTA’s Regional Performance Measures Report Card follows requirements in the 2008 transit reform legislation and recommendations made by the Illinois Auditor General in a 2007 performance and funding audit.
The Regional Performance Measures Report Card can be found online at www.rtachicago.com. Comments about the performance measures are being sought to help assess the region’s transit performance. Emails should be sent to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
before May 21.
|
