Posted Nov. 13 at 3:05 p.m.

Come Jan. 1, CTA is going to be pocketing more of our hard-earned cash.  The CTA board today passed the fare hike that would bring some rides as high as $2.25, but the good (or better) news is that the increase in CTA passes isn't as steep as originally proposed by the CTA Prez & Co.  The pass hike will be 15% rather than the 20% previously proposed. 

Check out this Trib item to see how hard your pocket will get hit. Update: Here's a clear-cut chart provided by the C to the T to the A, as well. Then, dip over to my fellow blogger Tracy Swartz's "Word on the Street" for some made-up mass transit words that might get you in a better mood.

Do you think there wasn't as much palpable rider outrage about these increases because it's clear the transit agency needs the cash to keep service running?  Or -- as some riders/readers argue-- are we all so mind-numbed from previous Doomsday threats that this latest change seems like a deal by comparison.

Posted Nov. 13 at 12:10 p.m.

We're on fare watch, folks.  Today could be the day that the CTA board hikes up fares to as much as $2.25 in some cases.  Check out our latest Trib update. I'm already getting e-mails from riders taking a hard look at CTA problems in light of the fact that they may have to pay more, while still dealing with them.  Check out this rider's take on a bus operator reportedly referring to riders as roaches.  Perdon?

"We all know how baristas practice their stand up acts on customers early in the morning (do we have a choice?) Well, this morning a loud mouth #77 belmont bus driver, even with a fare increase coming, was referring to his rider's as "roaches...". I couldn't believe my ears, so I stood right near the front, and he continued, "yeah, it looks like another 100 roaches are waiting on the next corner, heh, heh". (Insert rimshot here)  Perhaps he was speaking literally."

Are you seeing stuff that makes you want to say, I'm not paying another dime let alone five of them for this kind of service?

Posted Nov. 12 at 8:44 a.m.

Ding, ding, ding. That is the sound of your courtesy alarm that tomorrow at 6 p.m., the CTA is holding a meeting to make permanent West Side service changes, including the experimental Pink Line.  So if you've got something to say about it, tonight is the night.  The action is going down at the 10th police district office at 3315 W. Ogden Ave.

If your prof won't let you out of class or the boss won't give you a break, you can also e-mail in your opinions to ctaboard@transitchicago.com up until Nov. 18.

Plus, post them below for kicks.

Posted Nov. 4 at 12:33 p.m.

First of all, hope you got off your keisters and voted today if you didn't take advantage of the early booth time.  I don't care who you support; you get the country you deserve...so vote, vote, vote!

Speaking of voting, I receive quite a few complaints about the Pink Line, some of which I summarized in this week's column: Whether you love it, hate it, or want to see it modified, let the CTA know how you feel by attending their public hearing on Nov. 13 at 6 p.m. at the 10th Police District at 3315 W. Ogden Ave. 

Discussion also will center on about 15 routes including No.7-Harrison, No.X9-Ashland Express, #11 Lincoln/Sedgwick (#11 Lincoln and #37 Sedgwick combined), and #12 Roosevelt. Rail lines included are the Pink Line, Green Line and Cermak (Douglas) and Forest Park (Congress) Branches of the Blue Line.  Here's a link to the CTA's complete notice.

Be there, or be silenced.  Your vote counts, whether it's on our next president or our trains and buses.  Alright, stepping off the soapbox now.  Hope I don't break a heel.

Posted Oct. 21 at 8:36 a.m.

An operator whizzed by you without stopping on a rainy day, even though you were standing right under the sign.  Another gave you a verbal smackdown when your Chicago Card didn't work.  And don't forget the day you sat, fuming, while an operator stopped at a Mickey D's and grabbed a Big Mac -- midroute. 

Here's what some riders have told me about bad bus experiences, a topic I tackled in today's "Going Public," along with a story of a superb CTA employee.  Feel free to post your bus tales -- good and bad-- to the discussion.

But first, check out some factoids supplied by the CTA about the number of commendations and complaints for the employees so often on the front lines of our experience with the agency.  CTA spokeswoman Wanda Taylor said the comparisons aren't apples to apples because of a 6.7% spike in ridership and more channels for rider feedback in 2008, but here goes:

>4,631: number of full- and part-time operators in 2008

>4,537: number of full- and part-time operators in 2007

>217: number of commendations bus operators received through September in 2008

>264: number of commendations bus operators received through September in 2007

>2,529: number of complaints about bus operators through September in 2008

>2,175: number of complaints about bus operators through September in 2007 

Youch...even taking the ridership increases and enhanced CTA feedback channels into consideration, there are waaaay more complaints than kudos.  We're talking about 8-10 times more year over year.  I know most riders are likely to report bad bus behavior, rather than great or even fair treatment, but dayum....

Riders, do those stats look about right to you?  Operators, are you being judged unfairly?   

Posted Oct. 14 at 4:55 p.m.

How the heck do you evacuate a train?  Well, the CTA is telling us. Can you say P-S-A?  Check it out, yo!

Posted Oct. 14 at 12:35 p.m.

UPDATED  POST on Oct. 14 at 1:04 p.m.: In addition to today's news about better CTA communication, the agency today announced that on Monday, the following buses will join ctabustracker.com:

No.6-Jackson, No.11-Lincoln/Sedgwick; No.69-Cumberland/East River; No.79-79th; No.87-87th; No.145-Wilson/Michigan Express; No. 151-Sheridan; No.157-Streeterville.

See below for the full release about new CTA communications, which mention the e-mail service alerts, a revamped transitchicago.com and a new emergency information hotline customers can call.

Download customer_communications_plan_press_release_final.doc

First, we got clearer signage.  Then, we've got word next-train info is on the way.  Now, the CTA is stepping up its communications even more, offering e-mails to riders regarding service disruptions caused by events including equipment problems and construction, according to the Trib.  Stay tuned for more updates on this topic.

But off the bat, this definitely a huge step in the right direction, but what other actions would you like the agency to undertake for clearer communications? 

Posted Oct. 9 at 12:30 p.m.

Rising fuel costs, free rides for seniors, lower-than expected-revenue from the real estate transfer tax in a down housing market...These are all factors in the CTA's proposal today to increase fares to as much to $2.25, kill the bonus fare given to Chicago Card users and increase U-Pass cost by 20%. 

The CTA board still has to vote on this proposal, plus let riders sound off during a public hearing, but it seems the agency has mulled its options and a bounce in your bus and train cost is likely.

So will you, as the agency projects at least 1 percent of riders will do, jump ship?  Do you see this as a case of more-for-less or as a necessary move to keep transit going? 

Posted Oct. 6 at 5:03 p.m.

How said that ridiculous and needless violence has again claimed the life of a teen in Chicago, and on a CTA bus, no less...an enclosed space where customers are merely trying to get from A to B. 

This cannot be blamed on the transit agency, any more than the street corners can be blamed when shots ring out there. There are no metal detectors, armed guards or any other practical law enforcement tools onboard these buses, and surely the people who choose to act out on these vehicles know it. 

"Going Public" would like to take a moment to express deep sorrow and sympathy for the family and friends of Kiyanna Salter, a Julian High School student slain on a bus, the victim of a pointless argument between two strangers on Sunday.   

The details of her death, caught in the crossfire between armed strangers, are both saddening and sickening.  A wake-up call, not on CTA safety, but on big city violence. 

Earlier this year, I had the good fortune to speak with Ron Holt, father of another Julian student named Blair, also felled during a shoot-out on a CTA bus last year.  At the time we talked, he spoke of how random the violence was that took his son, who died trying to shield a seatmate from bullets.  What a shame to see a similar incident end another promising future.

There is not much to do in such cases, but if riders witnessed anything, please call police and share any details you can offer.  Show these offenders who turn a bus ride into a killing zone that human life does not come at so cheap a price. 

Posted Sept. 8 at 12 p.m.

For all y'all who were wondering how the CTA can pay for:

(1) Seniors' free rides without the state subsidy

(2) Fuel, during a spike in fuel prices

The answer is.  They really can't. Cuts are enroute.  Check it out, and let me know what you think.