Chicago site visitors rivals New York Metropolis for worst within the nation. A report from Inrix consultants launched on Jan. 5 exhibits Chicago commuters spend a whopping 102 hours a yr in site visitors. For comparability’s sake, commuters in Los Angeles rack up 88 hours, with Bostonians shedding 79 hours per yr to site visitors congestion. Globally, solely Istanbul has worse site visitors. Our toddlin’ city has an even bigger site visitors drawback than London.
Congestion has, in fact, been made worse by seemingly countless (and ill-timed) development initiatives that disrupt the movement of site visitors out and in of the town that do little to enhance journey occasions. On condition that the administration of Mayor Brandon Johnson is looking for new income wherever and all over the place and that New York started congestion pricing on Sunday, we weren’t stunned when Chicago Ald. Andre Vasquez mentioned on X: “Congestion pricing is smart because it helps result in much less congestion on streets, and if we mannequin it in a method that’s funded by those that come into the town, it helps fund highway upkeep and security.”
Ald. Vasquez forgets that Chicago isn’t New York, and neither is our site visitors, which is most problematic on the expressways and fundamental arteries, not in a South Loop enterprise district, which was nearly devoid of site visitors, human or vehicular, throughout the first a part of rush hour on Monday morning. Scarily so.
We’ve warned in opposition to congestion pricing prior to now and hope it stays useless. Nonetheless, with a funds deficit looming subsequent yr and a mayor whose most well-liked mode of coping with disagreeable fiscal realities is to hike taxes, income grabs like congestion pricing are at all times on the desk.
We’d moderately see consideration paid to bringing Chicago-area commuters clear, environment friendly and protected public transit methods. As we’ve written many occasions, riders of the Metra, CTA and Tempo are all too conscious these transit methods are plagued with service points and security issues.
Although the CTA’s funds continues to develop, service reductions and disruptions stay a actuality for individuals making an attempt to get again to the workplace. Just lately, the heads of Metra, CTA and Tempo warned of 40% service reductions by 2027. Although CTA has elevated prepare service to pre-pandemic ranges, it usually runs fewer trains than scheduled.
Curiously, New York permits us to observe a congestion pricing mannequin play out in actual time.
New York’s congestion pricing system took impact Jan. 5 for journeys in Manhattan under, and together with, sixtieth Road. From 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays by means of Fridays and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends, particular person drivers will face $9 tolls approaching Manhattan, whereas vehicles and buses pay tolls as much as $21. Taxis and ride-share automobiles, then again, pay simply $0.75 and $1.50 tolls, respectively. These charges will probably be handed onto prospects. That is little doubt because of the costly lobbying campaigns launched by ride-share corporations to provide their business a aggressive benefit.
Knowledge exhibits that on Jan. 6, the primary Monday of the brand new pricing setup, inbound commutes through the Holland Tunnel that might usually have taken 19 minutes at 8 a.m. have been reduce all the way down to 11 minutes, and a drive by means of the Lincoln Tunnel that used to take 9 minutes took simply 5 minutes. Little doubt New Yorkers who sometimes drive into the town are adjusting to their new actuality, and it’ll take much more time to totally perceive what new site visitors patterns will seem like, particularly as soon as any vacation lag is over. New York is the primary metropolis within the nation to undertake a coverage in any other case extra suited to European cities with clogged central enterprise districts.
Whereas its tax insurance policies are making headlines, New York has additionally been house to harrowing tales of subway violence, together with the brutal killing of a sleeping homeless lady on an F prepare, who was set on fireplace and burned to loss of life, seemingly at random. Hours later, somebody pushed a 45-year-old man onto the tracks forward of an oncoming prepare in Chelsea. Ready at a stoplight beats worrying about turning into a sufferer.
Drivers right here already pay congestion-style taxes for ride-sharing in sure elements of the town, a coverage established throughout the COVID-era to shut a funds hole. We’ll regulate the Gotham scenario because it performs out, however New York’s answer clearly received’t work right here in Chicago.
This editorial was printed by Chicago Tribune and distributed by Tribune Content material Company.
