RTA to host Suburban Transit Summit to gather feedback and build support for improving service with new funding

October 21, 2024

To gather feedback and build support for improving transit service with new, expanded funding, the RTA is hosting a half-day Suburban Transit Summit in Arlington Heights on October 24 in partnership with Metra, Pace, and CTA. The event will provide a forum to discuss the future of transit service in Chicago’s suburbs with a diverse audience of state legislators, transit agency leadership and staff, local officials, the business community, advocates, and riders. Areas of focus include interconnected themes of suburban transit: service, regional connections, integrated fare policy, land use, and economic development—and how sustainable funding could accelerate progress in each of these areas.

Transit must compete harder in the suburbs due to lower densities and higher car ownership. The transit rider experience is heavily impacted by schedules, fares, inter-agency transfers, and the surrounding land-use decisions. Summit participants will learn about ongoing agency plans to transform suburban transit through network revitalization and new connections, and how these plans are interconnected to provide regional benefit.

RTA staff will discuss the need for $1.5 billion in annual systemwide operations funding and share an overview of programs and tools the RTA provides to local municipalities to support transit-oriented development or TOD, such as the soon to be released Transit-Friendly Communities Guide. Leaders from Metra, Pace, and CTA will share perspectives from a region that is advancing and modernizing suburban transit.

The event will feature panel discussions and interactive sessions, providing participants an opportunity to share input and feedback as RTA and the Service Boards continue to pursue plans to transform suburban transit service.

The summit will culminate in small group interactive sessions on Metra, Pace, CTA, and RTA initiatives. Across 75 minutes, participants will join self-selected breakout tables to learn more and provide feedback on several key topics for the future of suburban transit service. Each table discussion will last 20 minutes, and then participants can choose to rotate to another topic. Table discussions will start with a brief overview of the topic from agency staff before welcoming questions and feedback from participants.

Metra’s regional rail vision and systemwide network plan

In Metra’s 2023-27 Strategic Plan, My Metra, Our Future, Metra began to lay out its vision to transform to a regional rail service from one that had been almost entirely focused on moving commuters from the suburbs to downtown Chicago. The evolution toward a regional rail service, which would entail more frequent service at regular intervals that enables more suburb-to-suburb travel, has already begun with recent schedule enhancements, but to understand what shape this evolution should take on each line, Metra initiated a Systemwide Network Plan (SNP). The SNP will identify how Metra can better serve changing travel markets with regional rail service, and it will guide Metra capital and operations for the next 20+ years. Learn more about the SNP.

Pace Pulse

As part of Pace’s strategic vision plan, Driving Innovation, the agency has committed to expanding its network of arterial bus rapid transit service called Pulse. Pulse provides premium limited-stop bus service to commuters featuring enhanced amenities and streamlined routes in heavily traveled corridors of Chicagoland. In August 2019, Pace launched the Pulse Milwaukee Line, serving thousands of commuters between Niles and Chicago, and the Pulse Dempster Line started in August 2023 bringing fast, frequent service between Evanston and O'Hare Airport. There are three corridors currently in project development including Halsted, 95th Street, and Cermak. Learn more about Pace Pulse.

Pace’s ReVision network revitalization plan

ReVision is an opportunity to rethink Pace's entire network of services, building on the principles of accessibility, equity, and productivity defined in the agency’s Driving Innovation strategic plan. This project will review and reimagine where and how often Pace routes should run, and what types of transit service are appropriate in different areas of the Chicago region. ReVision will combine comprehensive technical analysis with an ongoing regional conversation about the values and priorities that stakeholders, riders, and the public want the Pace network to reflect. Learn more about ReVision.

How CTA moves the suburbs

CTA provides rail and bus service in 35 suburban municipalities, connecting to Metra and Pace routes throughout the region. Learn more about how CTA currently serves the suburbs and the agency’s plans for future improvements.

RTA Transit Friendly Communities Guide, Community Planning, and Access to Transit programs

The RTA’s Local Planning team supports local governments, nonprofit organizations, and others in creating more transit-friendly communities through its Transit Friendly Communities Guide, Community Planning program, and Access to Transit program. The Transit Friendly Communities Guide will provide useful tools and standards to help make development and land-use decisions that improve access to transit to ensure that riders and residents of those communities can travel safely and efficiently. The Community Planning program provides funding and technical assistance to local governments to help foster the growth of sustainable, equitable, walkable, and transit-friendly communities. And the Access to Transit program helps communities improve the infrastructure around their transit stations and stops, making connections for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit riders safer, more accessible, and more attractive.

RTA system’s fiscal cliff and governance reform

Chicago’s regional transit system is facing a projected operating shortfall of more than $730 million annually—or nearly 20% of the regional operating budget—starting in 2026 because of historic underfunding and lower fare revenues from changing post-pandemic travel patterns. Any new funding must come with reforms that improve the rider experience, and the RTA is advocating for stronger regional authority with more influence and oversight on service, fare policy, and capital project prioritization.

Program

The program will include remarks from Arlington Heights Mayor Thomas Hayes, State Representative Mary Beth Canty, State Senator Ram Villivalam, and State Representative Eva-Dina Delgado. An opening panel discussion on the future of public transportation in Chicago’s suburbs will feature RTA Executive Director Leanne Redden, Metra CEO Jim Derwinski, Pace Executive Director Melinda Metzger, and New Jersey Transit Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel Brian Wilton. Following a break, a panel discussion featuring Maywood Mayor Nathaniel Booker, Harvey Mayor Christopher Clark, Libertyville Mayor Donna Johnson, and Skokie Mayor George Van Dusen, moderated by Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns, will explore the critical role public transit plays in their communities and how it can change and improve.

The event will conclude with remarks from RTA Board Chair Kirk Dillard. While attendance is limited by invitation, the RTA will share written and video recaps in the days following the summit, and lessons learned will carry forward in the agency’s work in advocating for funding and reform.

Join the Transit is the Answer Coalition

The RTA is working with policy makers at all levels of government to develop sustainable funding solutions and improve the system for all riders. Join the Transit is the Answer Coalition to help bring about the legislative changes needed to support transit at this pivotal moment.