IL: Metra falling further behind budget amid COVID-19 ridership decline, with cost cuts coming...... [View all]

As the pandemic persists and people stay home in droves, Metra is falling further behind its revenue schedule.

The Chicago area’s commuter rail system upped its projected two-year budget deficit to $682.5 million at a virtual monthly board Wednesday, and warned that it will have to start cutting costs more aggressively without additional federal aid like the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act passed in March.

“CARES funds won’t last forever,” Thomas Farmer, Metra’s chief financial officer, said during the meeting. “We must adjust costs if ridership doesn’t return soon.”

Metra, which operates 11 rail lines across six counties, has seen ridership plunge to about 10% of its pre-COVID-19 level, as remote working and school remain the norm for many commuters. Train cars are still “largely empty” despite cutting daily service by more than half, Farmer said. ..............(more)

https://www.masstransitmag.com/rail/news/21150996/il-metra-falling-further-behind-budget-amid-covid19-ridership-decline-with-cost-cuts-coming-down-the-line