Our friend Chris Hayes at The Nation recently asked a contact at the Chicago Transit Authority whether public transit improvements are likely to be among the "shovel ready" infrastructure projects to receive federal stimulus funds.  The answer is fascinating, disturbing, and worth a full read.  In short, because of the "perverse" mass transit funding system in Illinois, it's unlikely that bus and train systems are going to get their fair share.  Here's the conclusion, in which the unnamed CTA insider worries that Chicago public transit will ultimately be sold off by Mayor Daley:

So this is all to say that from a policy standpoint, transit loses v. roads right now. From a funding standpoint, they lose. From a political influence standpoint, they lose (some say because most manufacturers of transit rolling stock -- buses and trains -- are no longer in US, which shouldn't in itself be a problem). Transit is still viewed as a service for low income minority populations, and still viewed as a colossally bad investment given the high entry costs. Experience after experience, expert after expert, has shown this to be bullshit, but roads still command the policy and political attention.

A recent trend to address all of this is to privatize systems' capital resources -- public private "partnerships". This to me is a story that is dying to be written. Who is the most important person in Chicago City government? Next to the Mayor, I'd say John Schmidt (at Mayer [Brown]) who is crafting and executing the wholesale selling off of any capital resource in Chicago that does (or could) generate revenue. Roads, parking meters, airports -- transit is next. The merits of this trend are much debated out there, and most systems outside the US are privatized in some way (London being the most famous). I find this really, really corrosive and disturbing. The social contract is changing around here -- we just expect our government to provide services into the very near future, no matter how they are funded, no matter how much they cost, no matter who is providing them, and no matter that the way they are funded is in fact eroding our ability to enjoy those services into the future. Giving up (that's what it is) our crown jewels is not only the least creative and honest way to address the revenue crunch, but it is also giving up the most valuable resources we have. I fear that transit will fall victim to Schmidt and [Mayor Daley]'s strategy.

After watching Daley lease one public asset after another in the name of short-term revenue gains, it's not hard to imagine the CTA going to the highest bidder as well. 

What's frustrating, as we explained last week, is that sustainable revenue sources for public transit are right there at our fingertips.  In the next few years, Chicago drivers are going to face higher rates from the companies now operating our parking meters and downtown parking garages.  This de facto congestion pricing system will encourage them to leave their cars at home. But because the CTA isn't going see any of the resulting revenue, these commuters are then going to be met with a public transit system characterized by increasing fares and deteriorating services. 

So, beyond the private operators, who wins in this scenario?  It's hard to tell.