Streetsblog Chicago

• Finally! National coverage of the surprising early-morning 10/31 passage of Illinois' robust transit reform/funding bill, the "Halloween Miracle" (Governing)

TLDR: Streetsblog Chicago is kicking off our 2026 fund drive, and we need to raise $50K. We hit some rough road this year, and it looked like we might not be able to keep the (bike) lights on in 2026. Read on if you'd like to hear about how the site got saved... for now. And please consider making a tax-deductible donation to keep our sustainable transportation reporting and advocacy running smoothly next year. Thank you!

In a recent post, SBC contributor Richard Day argued that it's time to move past rejoicing in the passage of the robust transit reform and funding bill that will save local bus and train service, and start getting to work on optimizing the win. "This is the last, best chance we have to deliver the sort of transformative transit system the region deserves," he noted. "We can’t afford to waste it."

The film "Power Trip," written and directed by Myron Levin, discusses how films, video games, and automobile ads glamorize the kind of high-risk driving that kills people and tears families apart. While the number of traffic deaths is falling in other affluent nations, American crash fatalities rose to over 40,000 a year, with speed a factor in 30 percent of the cases. "The film is dedicated to the memory of crash victims everywhere, to their grieving families, and to those working to end the slaughter on our roads," its website states.

New York City dominated the headlines today after electing Zohran Mamdani as mayor. But it wasn't the only big U.S. city that's made history in the past week.

Update Friday 10/31/25, 9:00 AM: It was scary when the Illinois General Assembly floor debate over transit legislation entered the Halloween witching hours. But thankfully it looks like we've avoided a "Nightmare on Second Street" (the roadway where the state capitol is located). Here are some features of the new legislation that passed with $1.5 billion for public transportation, raised without statewide taxes, which I gleaned from a report by Capitol News Illinois and a summary by Capitol Fax.

As we approach the the end of October, things are getting eerie. I'm not talking about spectral Halloween decorations. (Sorry, I wound up squeezing two different holiday references into this post.) Rather, I'm referring to the haunting possibility that state legislators may go home from their fall veto session, wrapping up Tuesday through Thursday of next week, without passing a transit reform and funding bill. That could result in service cuts and layoffs, which would indeed be frightful.

• UChicago municipal finance expert Justin Marlowe explains, "What caused Chicago’s transit funding crisis—and what could fix it" (UChicago News)

This post is sponsored by The Bike Lane.