Metra eyes ticket price hikes, train cutbacks

Enjoy your current Metra fares and schedules while you can — fewer trains and ticket price hikes appear possible in the near future.

Metra administrators outlined some grim scenarios Friday in order to help the agency balance its budget.

“We're facing tough financial times,” Executive Director Alex Clifford said.

Financial staff discussed alternatives that included raising fares by 12 percent in 2012 and 8 percent in 2013. A worst-case scenario would involve a 21-percent ticket spike.

Other ideas included eliminating trains.

Earlier this week, the Illinois Toll Highway Authority brought up the prospect of raising expressway tolls to pay for the Elgin-O'Hare Expressway extension, meaning Chicago-area commuters could see a cost increase on several fronts.

Metra has been using its capital dollars to pay for operating expenses and that can't continue, staff planners said. The agency also faces significant cost increases for diesel fuel and underwhelming sales tax revenues.

“Fuel makes the situation even worse,” budget Director Jim Mickus said.

Metra directors had mixed reactions to the proposals and aren't expected to vote on a plan until the early fall.

“We have to be more businesslike in the way we look at fares,” said Director Jim LaBelle, who represents Lake County. But “we need to think more creatively about the value we provide. If we're asking people to pay more, we need to be able to say, ‘This is running as well as it can.'”

LaBelle also said Metra had to look at its administrative costs with no “sacred cows.”

Newly appointed board member and former Kane County Chairman Mike McCoy agreed.

“A fare increase is the last thing I'll consider,” he said. “I think we've got to cut costs first and look at fare increases second.”

Other directors said it was important to examine existing contracts, including ones with unions.

Arlington Heights Mayor Arlene Mulder questioned one option involving eliminating certain midday trains.

“I'm a little nervous at some of the cuts — we might be able to get into the city but not able to get home,” she said.

Some specific suggestions for service reductions involve:

Ÿ Cutting two afternoon rush-hour trains (inbound and outbound) as well as two evening trains on the BNSF Line, which serves Aurora, Naperville, Lisle and many other western suburbs.

Ÿ Dropping a morning and two afternoon rush-hour trains (inbound and outbound) plus one evening route on the Milwaukee North Line, which runs from Fox Lake through central Lake County to Chicago's Union Station.

Ÿ Eliminating one morning and one afternoon rush-hour train on the Elgin to Chicago Milwaukee West Line and the North Central Line from Antioch to Chicago.

Ÿ Cancelling one afternoon rush-hour train and two evening trains on the Union Pacific Northwest Line that links Harvard and McHenry to Chicago.

Ÿ Cutting four morning rush-hour trains (two inbound and two outbound) on the Union Pacific West Line linking Elburn to the Ogilvie Transportation Center in Chicago.

“By taking those trains out of the system you can do some adjustments in scheduling and affect as few customers as possible,” Clifford said, “and those customers can be absorbed into existing trains.”

Director Paul Darley said the agency needed to keep the needs of people hit hard by the recession in mind when it looks at service cuts.

“They will be the most impacted,” he said.

Metra is facing a $100 million deficit by 2013, staff said, unless changes are made.