Romayne Brown News Today

Metra's first-ever real estate purchase of a Harvey hand sanitizer warehouse was a poor financial decision, transit agency board members said.

The Metra board has authorized a 3.7% pay raise for CEO Jim Derwinski, as the agency contines to face low ridership and stares down a looming fiscal cliff. Derwinski will now make $325,825, up from $314,200. The change, retroactive to January 2023, marks his third raise since the onset of the pandemic, after the board approved raises for 2021 and 2022. Prior to the pandemic Derwinski’s salary ...

Weeks after the Ventra ticketing app crashed just as Metra rolled out new fares, the company behind the app said the failure was tied to a lack of appropriate testing before the Metra changes took place. Metra board members blasted the company, Cubic, on Wednesday, saying the app failures were a disappointment and a hit to the rail agency’s reputation, especially as Metra is continuing to try ...

Metra leaders released a 2024 budget and fare plan Wednesday with significant changes to the railroads ticketing and zone system.

Metra leaders question the ambitious Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning proposal to reinvent transit in the region.

Barbara Shrift passed away. This is the full obituary where you can share condolences and memories. Published in the Record Eagle on 2023-09-10.

If Metra wants new riders, it would do well to work with the CTA to allow commuters to transfer between the two agencies without paying more for the privilege.

To climb back to pre-pandemic high ridership numbers — and reduce reliance on federal relief funding — Metra board members discussed strategies for reaching new kinds of commuters at a Wednesday board meeting.

Express buses on the Tri-State? Its on Paces to-do list, new CEO Melinda Metzger says. These bad boys would zip between Harvey and Schaumburg in designated lanes offering a much-needed suburb-to-suburb connection.

Metra board members approved a salary increase of about 21% including retirement benefits for the agencys chief Wednesday, but the vote wasnt unanimous.