SOUL Helps Bodies Get Around

Governor Pat Quinn signed a bill on July 7 that has been a long time coming. Community group Southsiders Organizing for Unity & Liberation (SOUL) were the authors of the bill that addressed a simple problem that legislators and bureaucrats hadn’t been able to solve.

At last, public transit riders will be able to use the same farecard on CTA, Metra, and Pace and transfer between Metra trains and CTA buses and trains!

Alderman and former State Rep. Will Burns was a champion of this bill and moving it quickly and effectively through the legislature. It will work for folks who live in the city and travel to the suburbs for work. Those who need to go from one suburb to another via public transportation will find their trips easier, as well. Here’s a short video of Lamarr Scruggs, Ald. Burns, and Gov. Quinn at the bill signing.

http://youtu.be/1Il5KLDlphs

Video by Kelvin Ho.

This issue has affected South Side residents and people across the Chicago area for decades. Thousands of South Siders like Lamarr live near the Metra Electric train line but are unable to ride that train because they would need to transfer to a CTA bus or train and pay two fares instead of the $.25 cost of a CTA transfer. The new bill eliminates the extra charge.

Now, people like Lamarr will be able to use a single farecard and transfer easily between buses and trains run by different agencies. Transit advocates have been trying to make this change for 30 years, and SOUL’s organizing along with Ald. Burns’s leadership finally made it happen!