Logic....all but illogical

The Chicago CTA is one example of what is grossly wrong with the economic and management systems.

From the Chicago Tribune....CTA service would run less frequently and the basic fare would be raised to as much as $3 next year under a dire 2010 budget proposal unveiled today. The CTA workforce would be hit hard as well to ease a projected $300 million budget shortfall. Up to 1,100 union jobs and 100 administrative position are slated for elimination if new public funding and employee concessions fail to occur, transit officials said. "Union employees have been relatively untouched by layoffs [in recent years]," said CTA President Richard Rodriguez. "We are asking the unions to step up and be a part of the solution."Some 110 of the CTA's 150 bus routes would provide less frequent service under the belt-tightening plan. Average waiting times could double.Rail customers, who would pay the highest fares, could also face more crowded trains, Rodriguez said. "Customers may have a longer wait and they are less likely to have a seat," he said during a news conference at CTA headquarters downtown....

Just about every year there is a budget shortfall, and the solution "always" is to raise fares and cut services, which then guarantees less ridership and lower revenues...a slow death spiral. The City management needs to figure out a viable pricing strategy that will last a few years, cut the bloated management staff and their salaries, and put more money into infrastructure. When cities like Shanghai are having top-notch rail facilities, it is a disgrace to be stuck with this miserable thing called the CTA. Cut the salaries, make it public, then raise fares ONCE to a sufficiently high level to cover a few years, and then provide great service. $3 is a bargain (when compared to driving and parking in downtown) but the hassle involved is not.