After the 1974 Regional Transportation referendum barely passed, even after House Speaker Bill Redman put a bunch of us in his office telling us to write whatever amendments we wanted, we mounted a statewide against RTA out of McHenry County
$15 was being taken from the Road Fund for every license plate sold, as I remember.
There is a diversion from the Road Fund under NITA, an regional transportation agency renamed for some unknown reason.
Patrick Pfingsten, who publishes “Illinoise,” advanced the following arguments:
“What bothers me the most about the solution to bailing out Chicago area mass transit is how shameless Democrats are in swiping money from road money dedicated for downstate roads and bridges,” he writes.
And, :That’s being raided for mass transit. To the tune of about $860 million being diverted from roads and bridges to mass transit (85% of which will go to Chicago and suburban systems.)
“Don’t “believe me? Think I’m spouting ‘right wing talking points?’
“(As the Governor himself has accused me of doing in the past.)
“They put the fund raid in their own fact sheet.
“55% of that $860 million is supposed to go to downstate roads and bridges—about $470 million.
“Democrats blatantly and shamelessly stole $470 million from the fund that repairs roads and bridges downstate and gives the money to the CTA..”
Pfingsten also explains how the suburbs are being taken to the cleaners under the sales tax hike and toll tax hikes imposed on suburbanites.
“Congratulations, downstate. Congratulations, suburbanites. You’re on the hook for the mismanagement of Chicago mass transit.
“It’s like the worst version of a Robin Hood story ever.”
