NITA is in the driver’s seat for public transit with $8 million assist from consultants

Officials switched on NITA, the newly empowered agency overseeing Metra, Pace and the CTA, Tuesday.

Riders seeking information about the Northern Illinois Transit Authority, which replaces the Regional Transportation Authority, can visit the just-launched nita.illinois.gov website.

Transit reform legislation, passed in 2025, gives control of fares, finances and capital planning to NITA with the understanding the CTA, Metra and Pace would run day-to-day bus and train operations.

Much is expected of the incoming NITA board, whose responsibilities include introducing a universal fare and reducing crime on the CTA, as well as cutting costs.

The 20-member panel will be advised by the Boston Consulting Group, a firm hired by the Illinois Department of Transportation for up to $7.9 million over two years with options to renew their contract.

The consultants, who started Aug. 17, will assist with centralizing certain functions such as procurement, finding efficiencies, searching for an executive director, and organizing the reinvented system.

Seventeen NITA directors also will serve either on the CTA, Pace or Metra boards, and be paid a $25,000 annual stipend. Those on just one board will receive $15,000.

The NITA Act also delivered more than $1.2 billion in operating revenues to public transit in the city and suburbs through an increase in the RTA sales tax and diverting a chunk of gas sales taxes.

The windfall came as agencies faced a massive financial shortfall related to ridership plunging during COVID-19.

“A year ago, our state’s transit was facing a doomsday scenario, with service cuts and fare hikes that would have left riders stranded,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement.

“Together with our partners in the General Assembly, we stepped up to support riders, keep transit affordable, and improve services.”

mpyke@dailyherald.com