CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — It appears tele-commuting is going to continue to impact mass transit ridership in the Chicago area for the foreseeable future, even as COVID-19 is more in the rear-view mirror.
A Regional Transportation Authority survey of 5,600 current and lapsed riders indicates about 80% expect to return to using the CTA, Metra and Pace more regularly when the pandemic diminishes — but maybe not as much as they did before.
"This is really interesting data we need to be nimble on and really get on top of this and use it to put more people on our systems,” RTA chairman Kirk Dillard said.
Riders who responded to the survey say they’re more apt to return to mass transit when concerns are eased over the pandemic.
They say their decisions about using mass transit will be driven by speed of service, reliability and improved connectivity between buses and trains.
They also indicated they will be monitoring how well vehicles are ventilated and sanitized.
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