Illinois lawmakers recently passed a new $1.5 billion transit funding bill, but many Chicagoans worry about the L’s accessibility as pandemic relief money will leave a deficit and 2026’s budget plan remains uncertain.On October 31, state lawmakers passed a new transit funding bill titled the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA) Act amid budget cuts which threatened major reductions in service across the Chicagoland area, including Metra and Pace.
The region was facing the risk of 40 percent budget cuts to the Chicago Transit Authority’s (CTA) service, which were delayed by two to three months after funds from Metra, Pace and the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) were allocated towards the CTA’s 2026 budget.
As of 2024, 30 percent of individual ‘L’ stations are inaccessible, which makes entering and exiting a chunk of stations challenging for those with physical disabilities. In relation, 10.1 percent or over 520,000 Chicagoans report having a disability, according to the city’s official website, which accentuates the need for more accessible public transportation.
Whether it be a lack of wheelchair-accessible entrances and exits or functioning escalators, elevators and ramps, many stations lack one or more of these options, which creates an inaccessible environment for folks who get around the city via the ‘L.’
Since his inauguration in 2023, Mayor Brandon Johnson has prioritized accessibility with a transition committee report following months after he took office outlining plans to make Chicago a “more just and vibrant city for all.”
Recent initiatives such as the renovated Red Line stations, a step forward in the Red and Purple Modernization Program (RPM) and $40 million investment towards modernizing homeless shelter infrastructure throughout the city try to “ensure every Chicagoan can live securely with the dignity they deserve,” as reported by the Office of the Mayor’s Press Room.
Furthermore, projects such as the All Stations-Accessibility Program (ASAP) aim to overhaul inaccessible stations to be vertically accessible by 2038, which has received support from Johnson during his time as city mayor.
However, future operations surrounding these programs have been called into question due to the $2.1B hole in the city’s infrastructure funding created by the Trump administration’s decision to withhold funds.
Bo Crough, a sophomore at DePaul University who is a person with dwarfism and relies on public transportation, said over email, “Some stations have definitely seen improvement with accessibility, but it’s still a huge problem that is definitely not prioritized.”
Crough wants the city to focus on accessible infrastructure, especially in the busiest stations — stations that are most commonly used by people with disabilities.
“The stations themselves only feel accessible when everything is working, which I don’t feel is very often,” Crough said. “Even at stations that are marked as accessible, there are often broken-down escalators and elevators.”
These elevators and escalators can be “out of commission for weeks,” according to Crough.
“[This] essentially strands people trying to use the station with a mobility aid,” Crough said.
Reven DeVito, a sophomore at DePaul University who experiences chronic nerve pain in his legs, lives in the Lakeview neighborhood, which requires him to commute if he wants to reach campus in a timely manner.
DeVito cited similar issues with the ‘L’ and its various stations’ reliability. Over email, he said, “The elevators are not consistently cleaned most of the time. The elevators for stations are often harder to find, and the escalators tend to break down.”
In addition to accessibility options for stations, DeVito said, “The lack of benches on the station is a huge issue.”
“Often I must just lean against a pillar at the station for support when many people need to sit,” DeVito added.
When asked if accessibility is something that is prioritized, DeVito said: “I feel like there is a push for accessibility on the CTA. However, there are more widespread issues that demand greater funding, and so it gets less attention.”
Crough and DeVito’s experiences highlight how, even at stations with accessibility options, other facets of station care such as maintenance and cleanliness may be neglected, all the while underlining the fear that many like Crough and Reven have felt over the last few months following the Trump administration’s attacks on sanctuary cities.
The new funding agreement is “deeply symbolic of heightened collaboration between agencies, which has been a long time coming,” said Dr. Joseph Schwieterman, a professor at the School of Public Service at DePaul University. “The fact that they’re not quibbling or fighting over how funding is allocated, but they’re actually sharing each other’s — collaborating to benefit the public, even if one has to take a hit.”
However, despite the collaborative efforts between the CTA, Metra, Pace and RTA, Schwieterman urges agencies to make the most out of reforms such as this to prevent future scares from happening while also expressing disappointment in their lack of clear communication regarding when these budget cuts would take effect.
Regarding the ambiguity of when doomsday would hit the CTA, Dr. Schwieterman said: “We have never gotten a clear explanation. First, it was late 2025. Then, it was early 2026.”
For what must be done heading forward, Dr. Schwieterman said, “New sources of funding, better cooperation between agencies, ways to stretch our dollars further — all that has got to be part of the mix, and we’re not as far along with that as I thought.”
“I thought by now we would have agencies in unison going to Springfield saying ‘It’s a new day, and we’re willing to give up some power for the good of the region,’ and they’re not — they’re doing that, but with y’know, with some asterisks connected with it.”
Header Image by Foster Benco
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