NITA to Unveil First Unified Chicago-Area Transit Budget

Northern Illinois Transit Authority Prepares First Regional Budget

The Northern Illinois Transit Authority is preparing to release a single budget for NITA and the three transit agencies it supervises, CTA, Metra and Pace. The proposal is scheduled to debut during the first week of November, setting the stage for a public hearing on Nov. 12 at the agency’s downtown Chicago offices.

For decades, operating models across the Chicago metropolitan area relied on a fragmented approach. From 1984 through 2025, the operating financial framework involved RTA gathering sales tax income along with state and federal grant money, determining each agency’s financial allocation, and establishing the “marks” representing their available operational funds for budget planning. While those budgets required RTA Board of Directors’ approval, critics complained that the deadlines made gave RTA little time to give input.

Transit reform legislation passed last October fundamentally reconfigured that dynamic. The NITA Act transformed the old RTA framework into a more powerful NITA that is more involved in the budget process. Individual operating divisions still draft initial figures, but NITA staff and the Board of Directors now shape the final consolidated document presented for public review.

Public Hearings Move Across the Counties

The upcoming Nov. 12 public hearing will convene at 1 p.m. on the 16th floor of 175 W. Jackson Blvd. To prevent scheduling overlaps with board proceedings held that same morning in McHenry and Will counties, authorities moved the session away from the standard 9 a.m. RTA/NITA board kickoff time. Whereas the CTA traditionally conducted a single budget session, Metra and Pace generally hosted multiple gatherings, holding minimums of one hearing per county.

Following the initial release, NITA leadership will take the proposed budget before the Cook County Board of Commissioners and collar county governing boards, with the Cook County session tentatively planned for Nov. 18. NITA board currently expects to approve the budget during its Dec. 10 meeting.

Date	Event	Location / Notes
Early November 2026	Proposed Regional Budget Release	NITA unified draft published
Nov. 12, 2026	NITA Board Meeting & Public Hearing	175 W. Jackson Blvd., 16th Floor, Chicago (1 p.m.)
Nov. 18, 2026	Cook County Board Hearing	Tentative review date
Dec. 10, 2026	NITA Board Budget Vote	Scheduled for 9 a.m.

System Plans and Service Overhauls

Alongside the financial document, the individual operating entities are advancing long-term system improvement plans. Pace is working on a ReVision region-wide route revamp, while the Chicago Transit Authority works on its Bus Vision network overhaul. Meanwhile, Metra is progressing its Systemwide Network Plan to transition its commuter rail framework into a more frequent regional rail model.

For the Union Pacific North Line, which operates three stations in Evanston, the initial phase targets a frequency increase to once every 30 minutes. A subsequent phase proposes service every 15 minutes between Chicago and Winnetka, though that upgrade warns of a $112 million price tag required to procure eight new locomotives and 17 railcars.

Agencies are hosting direct public outreach sessions throughout November to gather community feedback on these network changes. The outreach schedule includes an event at the Robert Crown Center on Nov. 14, a virtual Metra event on Nov. 16, and a CTA Bus Vision outreach event at its Chicago headquarters on Nov. 17.