The Annual Meeting of the LWVE featured a panel on regional transportation moderated by League member Paula Scholl. Jane Grover (also a member!) and Victoria Barrett from the
Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) provided a preview of the new regional transportation plan that aims to make public transportation safer, more accessible, and more affordable. The system will be rider-centered and provide a high-quality transit system throughout northeastern Illinois
Under the new plan, the CTA, Metra, and Pace will be overseen by a new agency, the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA), with the goal of modernizing public transportation. Seamless service and fare integration across CTA, Metra, and Pace will enable riders to easily pay one fare to ride throughout the region. These changes are part of the new
Century Plan, which is a shared, overarching vision for northeastern Illinois.
League members also learned about shared use mobility and mobility hubs from Hannah Wilson of the
Shared Use Mobility Center (SUMC) in Chicago. This organization is working to replace our car-centric transportation system with other options. She discussed a focus on micromobility using bikes and scooters for personal transportation. Bikes and scooters are used for local travel and also serve as first/last mile connections to our transit system.
Another focus of SUMC is creating mobility hubs. A mobility hub is a central, community-focused location that seamlessly integrates public transit, shared mobility (bikes, scooters), and other travel options to allow for easy transfers between different modes of transport. SUMC is exploring how mobility hubs can serve the needs of different types of users, such as women and caregivers, whose trips are often shorter, more frequent, and outside of peak hours. She also noted that these groups often do what she called
trip chaining, taking one trip right after another. Hannah encouraged attendees to explore the SUMC
Shared Mobility Learning Center, a portal to online information on a range of mobility-related topics.
The panel addressed many other transportation topics too. Examples include distinguishing between overall numbers of crashes and crashes with serious injuries; the possible impacts of electric vehicles; and technology that can access local speed limit information and limit vehicle speed.
In implementing the transportation plans, the biggest challenge, according to our panelists, will be to build trust and support from the public. They also pointed to the complexity of interjurisdictional coordination. The CMAP region encompasses 284 municipalities! Still, our panelists seemed optimistic. Implementing changes that are now in development and planning stages will not be easy—but they can make travel safer, expand access, bolster reliability, and support a healthier environment across our region.