Sarah Freishtat

1 month ago | chicagotribune.com | Sarah Freishtat

The CTA spent more than $26,000 in 2023 and 2024 on three vehicles used by top officials at the public transit agency. In at least some instances, the vehicles were used more for commuting to and from work than for business purposes. That was the case for an SUV used by former CTA President Dorval Carter, who reported about four times as many miles commuting as he did for business purposes during the months for which data was available, documents recently made public show.

1 month ago | chicagotribune.com | Sarah Freishtat

More than half of Chicago’s bus routes could be eliminated, at least parts of four “L” lines could shut down and Metra weekday service would be slashed to once an hour under a transit doomsday scenario. Those are some of the cuts under consideration if lawmakers fail to plug a $771 million budget gap expected to hit the region’s four transit agencies as soon as next year, when COVID-19 relief funding runs out, the Regional Transportation Authority said Friday.

1 month ago | pantagraph.com | Sarah Freishtat

CHICAGO — A Southwest plane passed less than 200 feet behind a business jet at Midway Airport last month as the two nearly collided, a preliminary report from federal investigators shows. As the captain of the business plane, operated by Flexjet, approached the Southwest aircraft’s designated runway, he mistook it for a different runway, he told investigators. The crew of the plane looked both ways as they approached the intersection but didn’t see the Southwest plane.

1 month ago | chicagotribune.com | Sarah Freishtat

Metra agreed to pay its lobbyist as much as $4.65 million in part for work related to a looming transit budget crisis, even as agency leaders brace for a potential shortage of cash caused by the same crisis. The five-year lobbying contract is in effect as the the region’s four transit agencies, including Metra, stare down a $771 million budget gap when federal COVID-19 relief funding runs out next year.

1 month ago | chicagotribune.com | Sarah Freishtat

A Southwest plane passed less than 200 feet behind a business jet at Midway Airport last month as the two nearly collided, a preliminary report from federal investigators shows. As the captain of the business plane, operated by Flexjet, approached the Southwest aircraft’s designated runway, he mistook it for a different runway, he told investigators. The crew of the plane looked both ways as they approached the intersection but didn’t see the Southwest plane.