CTA

On January 13, the CTA announced that the agency's embattled President Dorval R. Carter was stepping down after more than a decade on the job. As Streetsblog discussed that day, elected officials and transit advocates had major problems with the way he ran the system, especially during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. They cited major problems with reliability, crime, and cleanliness. As early as last April, everyone from the grassroots group Commuters Take Action to Governor JB Pritzker was calling for new leadership at the agency.

This week, the Chicago Transit Board appointed Dorval Carter’s Chief of Staff Nora Leerhsen to serve as the acting president for the agency, replacing the departing — and controversial — president until a permanent replacement is found. 

It was a bombshell, but not a huge surprise, when the CTA announced this morning that President Dorval R. Carter Jr. is stepping down from his post at the end of this month.

Hard-boiled Streetsblog reporter J. Niimi hitches a ride with Santa Claus during a trip on the Blue Line's Forest Park branch.

Note: In what's sure to be a refreshing change of pace for Streetsblog Chicago readers, I have committed to not making any '80s pop music references in this article about a CTA service announcement.

At this week's final CTA board meeting of 2024, the directors approved several ordinances. Most notably, the CTA and DePaul University’s Driehaus College of Business agreed to launch a pair of pilot programs to help small minority-owned small businesses win contracts with the transit agency.

By J. Niimi

The talk featured representatives from Elevated Chicago, the CTA, the Department of Planning and Development, People for Community Recovery, and the Greater Roseland Chamber of Commerce.

Plus transit board members pushed President Dorval Carter on more accountability for current security, and the CTA announced a redesign of the Clark/Lake station.