New Year’s Procrastination
Posted by Fred Jandt
Editor, Mass Transit
I procrastinate on things. I am sure my wife has a list of things she has asked me to do that I have to get around to doing. I would wager most people reading this have procrastinated on something at one time or another. Who hasn’t? But there’s procrastination and then there is being ridiculous.
What did Chicago-area residents get for New Year’s? Another impending “doomsday” from its transit providers. It’s not like this is a surprise or anything, though, this present has been sitting under the tree for some time now.
The doomsday set for January 20th will see drastic cuts in service and increased fares from CTA with similar steps taken by PACE and Metra. All of this revolves around a lack of funding for transit.
Now here is the thing. This transit bill has been bouncing around Springfield for months. There have been several “doomsdays” already, each narrowly avoided by a sudden influx in cash. While this has saved transit service so far, it has had two disastrous effects. First, every time the date gets pushed back a little bit, the cuts needed to make up the pending shortfall get larger. And, probably even worse is the fact that the public has become numb to the whole situation.
It’s almost the boy that cried wolf, but instead there actually is a wolf here, it just keeps getting run off before anyone gets to see it. That begs the question, will it take an actual transit doomsday to get the funding CTA, Pace and Metra need to keep their service at appropriate levels?
So now we sit in the first week in January. A vote on the situation won’t likely come until January 9th, the next scheduled legislative session. That puts the situation 11 days out from doomsday. Let’s take out weekends and that puts it at about seven days. Seven days to come to terms on a transit funding bill that has been argued about since last summer.
Will it happen? Probably, but the thing is it never should have come down to the wire like this. This whole situation just smacks of politicians gambling with constituents livelihoods to see what they can get before reluctantly coming to a compromise when their time comes up.
Not necessarily the smartest thing to do going into an election year.
Thanks for reading the MT Position, and Happy New Year!
January 4th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
The situation of doomsday delayed, until it happens, reminds me of British Admiral John Bing who was executed in 1757. Bing’s offense was he was a mediocre commander against the French and he was doomed by political intrigue in London. You see, the ruling government needed to cover-up their underfunding the Navy’s budget (they stole the money), so Bing was their scapegoat. Nobody thought Bing would be executed. The King would surely pardon him. NOT!
Good luck Chicago!