Chicago Transit Board
March 14, 2007


Thank you Chairman Brown.

Good morning.
___

During the Olympic Selection 
Committee’s visit to Chicago last 
week, CTA’s recently acquired hybrid 
buses were provided to transport 
committee members and city officials 
on a tour of proposed Olympic 
venues throughout the city and 
surrounding area.



The hybrid buses are powered by 
both a diesel engine and electric 
motor and are expected to improve 
fuel efficiency, anywhere from 10 to 
40 percent, and can help to reduce 
emissions by as much as 90 percent 
compared to a diesel powered 
engine.

We are currently evaluating the 
performance of these hybrid buses in 
Chicago’s extreme weather 
conditions and comparing the two 
types of drive systems to determine if 
hybrid buses are suitable as future 
additions to CTA’s fleet.



We are pleased to be a part of the 
City’s efforts in working to bring the 
2016 Olympic Games here to 
Chicago and will continue to offer our 
support.
_______

Last Friday, the Francisco station on 
the Brown Line reopened to 
customers nearly a week ahead of 
schedule.

Francisco station reopened after six 
months of renovation work to 
completely rebuild the historic 
stationhouse and install a ramp 
which now makes the station newly 
accessible to customers.  



Along with a wheelchair accessible 
turnstile and tactile edging on the 
platform, additional customer 
amenities include brighter lighting, 
windbreaks, security cameras, 
benches and a new public address 
system.

Construction crews will continue to 
work in the weeks ahead to install 
permanent station signs, original 
artwork, windows and complete work 
to build a new auxiliary entrance at 
Sacramento on the west end of the 
station.  



Francisco is the fourth newly 
renovated station to reopen as part 
of the Brown Line capacity expansion 
project.  We have reopened all four 
stations ahead of schedule.  

Kimball station, which also closed 
with Francisco on September 15, 
reopened for service in January.  

In August 2006, the Kedzie and 
Rockwell stations reopened for 
service following a six-month 
temporary closure. 



The Montrose and Addison stations 
closed in early December for one 
year and are currently under 
construction, and the Southport 
station will temporarily close for 
construction on April 2 for one year.

The Belmont, Fullerton and Western 
stations remain open during the 
entire construction project.

Work also continues at Chicago, 
Armitage and Sedgwick, which are 
subject to a few weekend-only 
closures.  



This past Monday we hosted the first 
of four informational meetings 
scheduled this month to provide 
affected customers with details on 
plans for the upcoming switch to 
three-track operations.  

We want to make sure that 
customers know that even though rail 
capacity will be reduced in the 
affected corridor, there are many 
good bus options in that area.  

In addition, we have been working 
with Metra and last week they 
announced plans to add additional 
service on the Union Pacific North 
Line.



The overall Brown Line capacity 
expansion project remains on time 
and on budget and when completed 
in 2009, CTA customers will reap the 
benefits of increased capacity along 
the Brown Line and accessible, 
state-of-the-art stations.
___

Two weeks ago, I participated in an 
event to present the Chicago Police 
Department’s Public Transportation 
Section with 19 new squad cars to 
replace older vehicles in the fleet.  



The vehicles will be used by officers 
in the Public Transportation Section 
as they patrol and monitor CTA’s 
system.

The presence of law enforcement on 
the system serves as a deterrent to 
crime and also provides a measure 
of comfort and security to customers.

By being mobile, officers can quickly 
respond to incidents on both buses 
and trains, which is why having new, 
reliable police cars is essential.



In addition, we will be adding 
equipment so that these vehicles can 
participate in CTA’s Mobile Security 
Network pilot currently underway.  

The network allows images from 
security cameras on select buses 
and rail stations to be sent to laptops 
in the cars via a wireless router.

We are proud to work in partnership 
with the City by providing these new 
vehicles to support the police 
department and enable them to 
perform their jobs more effectively. 

It reaffirms our commitment to the 
safety of our bus and rail customers 
as well as to our employees.
___

And now, as is customary, I have an 
update for the Board on ridership.

In January, 39.8 million rides were 
provided during the month, an 
increase of 1.1 percent compared to 
January 2006. 

Systemwide, ridership in January 
increased by 0.9 percent on 
weekdays, Saturdays were up 3.7 
percent and Sundays/Holiday 
decreased by 0.7 percent.



The rail system provided 15.2 million 
rides in January, a decrease of 0.8 
percent compared to last year.  
Weekdays were down 1.2 percent, 
Saturdays were up 2.5 percent and 
Sundays/Holidays were unchanged.

The bus system provided 24.5 million 
rides in January, an increase of 3.1 
percent compared to January 2006.  
This was the third month in a row of 
increased ridership on the busy 
system.  Weekdays were up 3.2 
percent, Saturdays were up 5.1 
percent and Sunday/Holidays were 
unchanged.  



Express routes introduced last year 
as part of the West Side and near 
western suburbs service 
enhancements – namely the X9 
Ashland Express, the X20 
Washington/Madison Express and 
the X54 Cicero Express – were 
catalysts for growth in bus ridership 
in January.

We remain focused on providing 
service for our customers that is on 
time, clean, safe and friendly.
___

In closing, as always, I thank the 
Board for supporting CTA’s mission 
of delivering quality, affordable transit 
services that link people, jobs and 
communities. 

I thank you and this concludes my 
report.

President’s Board Report – March 2007

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