Public Transit in a Post-Covid World: Building a Financially Stable, Equitable, and Accessible Mass Transit System
The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the Civic Federation, and the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago co-hosted a transportation forum. The half-day conference covered the following issues:
Thursday, April 13, 2023
8:15 am – 1:30 pm CT / 9:15 am – 2:30 pm ET
- The future and financial sustainability of mass transit
- Addressing the financial cliff after federal Covid relief funds are spent
- Equity and access to transit
- The role transit plays in spurring economic development
Thursday, 04/13/23
8:15 AM
Registration and Continental Breakfast
8:45 AM
Welcome Remarks: History of Mass Transit Funding in the Chicago Region
Speaker
Sarah Wetmore, Acting President, Civic Federation
9:15 AM
Break
9:30 AM
Panel 1: Solving the Transit Funding Riddle in Northeast Illinois and Beyond
Speakers
Julie Hamos, Former Chair, Illinois House of Representatives Mass Transit Committee
Joseph Schwieterman, Professor, School of Public Service, DePaul University
Andrew Ward, Group Credit Officer for US Public Finance, Fitch Ratings
Ram Villivalam, Illinois State Senate, 8th District
10:45 AM
Break
11:00 AM
Panel 2: Envisioning a Mass Transit System that Promotes Equity, Opportunity and Economic Growth
Speakers
Erin Aleman, Executive Director, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP)
Sharon Carney, Chief of Staff, Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, Government of the District of Columbia
Bob Dean, Chief Strategy and Program Officer, Center for Neighborhood Technology
Georgia Gann Dohrmann, Assistant Director, Metropolitan Transportation Commission
Tom Kotorac, Senior Vice President, Transportation and Infrastructure, Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago
12:15 PM
Break
12:30 PM
Luncheon and Keynote Address
Speaker
Joshua Schank, Managing Principal, InfraStrategies LLC
Public Transit
The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the Civic Federation, and the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago co-hosted a transportation forum. The half-day conference covered the following issues:
- The future and financial sustainability of mass transit
- Addressing the financial cliff after federal Covid relief funds are spent
- Equity and access to transit
- The role transit plays in spurring economic development
