| In 1914, all of
the local street railways, consolidated to become Chicago Surface Lines (CSL). In 1924,
another amalgam of small companies, made up of Chicago and South Side Rapid Transit Co.
(formed in 1892), Lake Street Elevated Railroad Co. (1893), Metropolitan West Side
Elevated Railroad Co. (1895), and Northwestern Elevated Railroad Co. (1900), all
consolidated to form the Chicago Rapid Transit Company (CRT). These two consolidated
companies eventually became the foundation for the CTA. |
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| Welcome! This is the place to learn the CTA's story.
This section will educate you on our history, vital statistics,
how to get around on the CTA and more. |
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Our Mission
We deliver quality, affordable transit services that link people, jobs and communities.
Our Values
We will accomplish our mission with a diverse workforce that is:
- Courteous - We will create a pleasant environment for ourselves and our customers.
- Innovative - We will seek out and encourage employees who initiate change, improvement, learning and advancement of our goals.
- Motivated - We will meet each task with spirit, enthusiasm and a sense of pride to be second to none.
- Professional - We will provide transit service with the highest standards of quality and safety for our customers and ourselves.
- Reliable - We will be dependable for our customers and fellow employees, and will maintain the highest standards of trust.
- Results-Oriented - We will focus on getting the job done and will derive personal satisfaction from the service we provide.
Our Commitments
We will accomplish our mission by:
- Setting clear goals, standards and priorities.
- Communicating openly with customers and employees.
- Helping all of our employees develop to their fullest potential through enhanced training and education.
- Being accountable to fellow employees and customers.
- Supporting employees so that they can serve customers.
- Engaging employees in decisions that affect them and their work and creating a stronger sense of ownership among our employees.
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History
The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is an independent governmental agency created by state
legislation. The CTA began operating on October 1, 1947, after it acquired the properties
of the Chicago Rapid Transit Company and the Chicago Surface Lines. On October 1, 1952,
CTA became the sole operator of Chicago transit when it purchased the Chicago Motor Coach
system.Operations and Service Area
The CTA operates the nation's second largest public transportation system and
covers the City of Chicago and 40 surrounding suburbs. On an average weekday, 1.6 million
rides are taken on the CTA.
CTA has approximately 2,000 buses that operate over 154
routes and 2,273 route miles. Buses provide about 1 million passenger trips a day and serve more than 12,000 posted
bus stops. CTA's 1,190 rapid transit cars operate over eight routes and 222 miles of
track. CTA trains provide about 500,000 customer trips each day and serve 144 stations.
Chicago is one of the few cities in the world that has rail
service to two major airports. CTA's Blue Line 'L' can take customers to O'Hare International
Airport. Orange Line trains, which operate clockwise on the Loop 'L' structure, travel to
Midway Airport. Customers traveling from one airport to the other can change trains without
paying an extra fare at the Clark/Lake station.
Chicago Transit Board
The governing arm of the CTA is the Chicago Transit Board. The board consists
of seven members. Currently the Mayor of Chicago has appointed Rev. Charles E. Robinson,
Carole L. Brown, Alejandro Silva and Henry T. Chandler, Jr. as board members. Ms. Brown
serves as Chairman.
Serving alongside them are Susan A. Leonis, who serves as vice-chair, Cynthia A.
Panayotovich and Nicholas C. Zagotta who have been appointed by the Governor of
Illinois. The Mayor's appointees are subject to the approval of the Governor and
the Chicago City Council; the Governor's appointees are subject to the approval of
the Mayor and the Illinois State Senate. CTA's day-to-day operations are directed
by Ron Huberman, President.
Please direct your correspondence for Board Members to:
Chicago Transit Authority
P.O. Box 7567
Chicago, Illinois 60680-7567
Tel: 312-681-5022
Fax: 312-681-5035
Schedule for Chicago Transit Board meetings is available under Reports section.
CTA Revenue
The CTA generates revenue from farebox collections and
also receives supplemental funding for operating expenses from the Regional Transportation
Authority (RTA).
The complete Budget documents are available on
the CTA's web site under Finance/Budget on the home page.
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