Of course suburban mayors would lambast the idea of a truly regional transportation agency — folding together NIPC, CATS, the RTA service boards, and maybe the tollway authority. The current system benefits the suburbs greatly by larding up Metra, creating patronage jobs at ISTHA, and maintaining the pro-highways, pro-burbs attitude on transportation spending over at CATS — all while short-changing the city. CTA carries seven out of eight transit riders within the region, but gets only two-thirds of the regional transit operating subsidies (this despite high city sales tax rates).

Granted, the various agencies are doing a marginally better job of at least pretending to talk to one another these days, but the regional status quo continues to promote highway and railroad sprawl while remaining too sensitive to backroom political machinations like patronage hires or the “special request” projects that CATS designates for funds — the Hastert Highway, the Lipinski Trolley, etc.