Transit agencies OK first system-wide day pass

The new pass, which is expected to launch this fall as a six-month pilot, will be exclusive to Ventra apps. It will be good for the entire day until 3 a.m. the next day. Riders who want unlimited rides on all three systems currently have to buy a one-day CTA/Pace pass and a Metra day pass.

The new pass will be cheaper than buying CTA/Pace and Metra passes, but the break will be bigger on weekends than on weekdays. That’s because Metra weekday day passes cost the equivalent of two one-way tickets, while weekend day passes are $7 systemwide.

The new day pass will be especially useful to Evanston riders, who will be able to seamlessly hop between the Purple L line, Union Pacific North Metra line and any of the four CTA bus routes and five Pace bus routes that serve the city. And so long as they don’t take Metra to the Ogilvie Transportation Center or other downtown Metra terminals, Evanston riders won’t spend more than $10. That is the equivalent of CTA one-day pass before the pandemic, and less than a $7.50 Metra pass and a $5 CTA/Pace one-day pass. The transit agencies are hoping the savings will attract riders who appreciate the flexibility.

Rebuilding ridership

Over the past 20 years, CTA and Pace made significant strides in integrating their fare systems. Both use Ventra cards, their transfers are mutually compatible and, even before the pandemic, they had shared passes. But fare integration with Metra historically faced a major obstacle – its fares are distance-based rather than trip-based, with riders paying more the further they travel. But there has been some integration. Metra monthly pass riders can pay an extra $30 to get a Regional Connect pass add-on, which lets them ride CTA and Pace as well.

As all three agencies struggle to rebuild ridership post-pandemic, they’ve been trying to simplify fare systems and passes. Since early 2023, Pace has been accepting CTA passes (CTA and Pace retained separate passes for college students, and Pace has 30-day passes that don’t work on the CTA).

Metra experimented with a $100 systemwide Super-Saver monthly pass, which when combined with Regional Connect allowed for truly unlimited regionwide travel. But the pass was discontinued as part of the Feb. 1 fare restructuring, with Metra shifting back to monthly passes.

Regional Day Pass doesn’t quite bring back Super Saver’s flexibility, but riders will benefit with the kind of seamless transfers monthly pass holders with Regional Connect add-ons now enjoy.

Comparing costs

On weekdays the Regional Day Pass would cost the equivalent of a Metra day pass, plus $2.50. For example, a pass that would be good for Metra trips between Evanston and downtown Chicago (Metra fare zones 1-2) and a pass that would be good for any Metra trip that doesn’t involve downtown Chicago (fare zones 2-4) would both cost $10.

If Evanston riders want to, for example, use the pass to take Metra from Ogilvie to Ravinia (fare zones 1-3), they would pay $13.50. If they want to keep going to Lake Bluff (fare zones 1-4) they would pay $16.

During the weekends, the $10 pass is good for all fare zones. As RoundTable previously reported, weekend transit ridership recovered faster than weekday ridership regionwide, regardless of the transit system.

According to the intergovernmental agreement on the new Regional Day Pass, CTA and Pace will get $4 for every weekday day pass sold and $4.20 for every weekend day pass sold, with Metra keeping the rest. Erik Llewellyn, Pace’s chief planning officer, told the Pace board that CTA and Pace will split its share based on the existing joint pass revenue-sharing agreement, which splits the money based on the percentage of riders from each agency who use the pass.

RTA reimbursement

RTA will reimburse all three agencies for up to $1 million in lost revenues. The pilot will end either after six months of initial launch or when RTA’s $1 million reimbursement fund runs out of money, whichever happens first.

Metra and RTA boards of directors approved the agreement on June 12 and June 20, respectively. Chicago Transit Board approved it on Tuesday, and the Pace board of directors approved it on Wednesday.

An app hurdle

Llewellyn said that the exact date of launch will depend on how soon Cubic, the company that operates Ventra, makes necessary changes to the app and completes field-testing. That’s an important consideration, given that Metra’s last fare overhaul was marred with app glitches during the initial launch.

Llewellyn said that Pace supported the agreement because “it would allow customers to seamlessly use the services provided by each agency at a reduced rate.”

Pace board member Chris Canning, who represents the section of Cook County that includes Evanston, described the pass as a good way to save on parking, especially if one was driving all the way to the Loop.

CTA Chief Innovations Officer Molly Poppe said the pass will “unlock the important demographic of riders, because Regional Connect is only available to monthly riders” and “the daily pass really takes the cost down.” Those demographics include workplace commuters and students, she said.

When asked what benchmarks CTA will use to judge the app’s success. Poppe said they will look at the number of cross-system “linked trips” and at how many riders use “paper” one-day passes, currently available at Ventra vending machines.

CTA president Dorval Carter described the new pass as part of “our strategy to bring the ridership back.” He suggested that more funding was key to more interagency collaboration.

“And the truth of the matter is – when we have the money to support the things we’re doing, it’s easier to get the agreement on the policy side,” Carter said.

Transit agencies OK first system-wide day pass is from Evanston RoundTable, Evanston's most trusted source for unbiased, in-depth journalism.