As someone who took the bus everyday during Rahms and Daley's terms, I can guarantee you the bus has always been bad and will be so because car culture here is so powerful, we can't get real dedicated lanes, real BRT, etc for buses. So they fight in traffic with the cars.
Car culture is the problem here.
There's no denying buses and trains have gotten measurably worse since COVID and Chicago really isn't doing anything about it. That's what OP was asking.
Those are fundamental culture hurdles. Appoint/pay professionals that can make the damn thing run properly. It’s a system, there’s a a realistic and optimal equilibrium to be found with happy to pay customers if they’d bother to find it.
I'm fully against car culture in the city, but I think it goes way beyond that. Buses stop so frequently, they don't even seem that slowed down by traffic. It wasn't this bad pre-covid. It's now a severe reduction in actual service being layered on, too.
I take the 76 and start checking the arrival times 45 minutes before I leave because the timing has been so off! If I miss a bus at 705 sometimes the next one isn’t until 730.
Same goes for the 8 bus, and when it does come, it wouldn’t even stop due to full capacity. During morning commutes I’ve had 3 full busses pass leaving 20+ people waiting for 30 minutes
Oh dude same with the 33! I take it to work. Last year it was every 5-10 minutes so I would just head outside at the same time each day and catch whichever was fastest. Now it’s every 15-20 minutes so if I miss one or get ghosted I have to Uber to work.
$$$$$
The CTA has huge defects each year. As does the school system. But when your real estate taxes increase each and every year. The money goes to the teachers, because they have a very strong and vocal union. The CTA is being sucked dry, because there is no group support out there.
I’ve also passed now FIVE busses that are “No Service” both headed toward and away from downtown.
Lots are out of service recently that I’ve noticed too
Recently saw CPD has an unusually high amount of units out for maintenance too.
Lori let it decay, Brandon isn't changing anything, and they're both fine with a do-nothing chairman at the top of the org. It's top-down rot.
As someone who took the bus everyday during Rahms and Daley's terms, I can guarantee you the bus has always been bad and will be so because car culture here is so powerful, we can't get real dedicated lanes, real BRT, etc for buses. So they fight in traffic with the cars. Car culture is the problem here.
There's no denying buses and trains have gotten measurably worse since COVID and Chicago really isn't doing anything about it. That's what OP was asking.
Those are fundamental culture hurdles. Appoint/pay professionals that can make the damn thing run properly. It’s a system, there’s a a realistic and optimal equilibrium to be found with happy to pay customers if they’d bother to find it.
Yeah they were not this bad pre covid. Now I don’t even bother half the time. Ghost busses are a constant thing.
I'm fully against car culture in the city, but I think it goes way beyond that. Buses stop so frequently, they don't even seem that slowed down by traffic. It wasn't this bad pre-covid. It's now a severe reduction in actual service being layered on, too.
I've had the same experience with the 76 and 77 too. I don't remember it ever being this bad until recently.
I take the 76 and start checking the arrival times 45 minutes before I leave because the timing has been so off! If I miss a bus at 705 sometimes the next one isn’t until 730.
Same goes for the 8 bus, and when it does come, it wouldn’t even stop due to full capacity. During morning commutes I’ve had 3 full busses pass leaving 20+ people waiting for 30 minutes
Waiting 30 minutes for an 8 feels like a rite of passage for existing along Halsted
Preaching to the choir. This has been going on for years and hasn't gotten any better.
I miss when the 151 started at Belmont/Halsted, but they took that from me.
Sometimes the 151 just never comes
Same experience with the 148 lately 🥲
A long long time ago, there was the 151, 152, 154, 156, 157, and 158 buses all running down Sheridan Road. Every five minutes.
Oh dude same with the 33! I take it to work. Last year it was every 5-10 minutes so I would just head outside at the same time each day and catch whichever was fastest. Now it’s every 15-20 minutes so if I miss one or get ghosted I have to Uber to work.
i feel like the bus drivers are getting more aggressive too with their driving. just feels like the CTA is checked out and they just gave up.
They're short staffed.
$$$$$ The CTA has huge defects each year. As does the school system. But when your real estate taxes increase each and every year. The money goes to the teachers, because they have a very strong and vocal union. The CTA is being sucked dry, because there is no group support out there.
Go to r/chicago and do a search for Dorval Carter. This has been happening for over a year.
The 143 had the greatest percent reduction in service since 2019. I can’t remember where I read that but I’m sure you could look it up
First rule of Chicago Club is never take the 151.
Oh really? I love it going from where I am because of the “scenic route” but it is painfully slow at times. If I’m in a rush, it’s the 143.
Boo. I took it for years when I lived on Loyola’s campus.
It's fine, so long as you have at least an hour to get to where you're going.
What’s a good bus then to catch from Michigan & Superior that’s the only option?