Advocates praise CTA 'stops of hope' Narcan pilot and urge wider rider outreach

Sheila Heni, a harm-reduction advocate, told the Chicago Transit Authority board on March 11 that the CTA’s five-site Narcan vending‑machine pilot—called “stops of hope”—has distributed “thousands of units of Narcan” over six months and has spurred outreach and peer education at stations. Heni said community partners, transit employees and providers are coordinating to turn stations into points of connection and training.

Fa (Buford) Berry, director of the Westside Heroin Opioid Task Force, asked CTA to run a rider communications campaign (car cards, digital monitors and in‑car announcements) to teach riders how to use naloxone. Berry told the board that, in his view, “overdoses citywide have been reduced by 40%” since the pilot began; that figure was presented as his testimony and was not independently verified during the meeting.

Tanya Fischer of Lutheran Social Services described recurring outreach events at the five pilot stations—“resources on the rails”—that pair vending machines with staffed resource fairs linking riders to harm‑reduction, behavioral‑health and social‑service providers. John Wernerning of the Chicago Recovery Alliance traced Chicago’s long history with naloxone distribution and urged continued reinvestment and expansion of the CTA pilot to reach underserved communities.

Board members and acting CTA staff responded with appreciation for the partnerships and said they would continue to coordinate on communications and outreach. Acting President Nora Litz and staff representatives attending the meeting acknowledged the pilot and the requests for broader rider education; they said CTA communications and outreach teams are engaged with the work group.

The public comments were part of a larger board meeting that also addressed finance, procurement and infrastructure items. The advocates’ requests centered on (1) broadening rider-facing communications about where and how to access naloxone at stations, (2) continuing outreach and education events at pilot sites, and (3) considering scale-up if the pilot continues to show local benefit.

What remains unverified in the record is the magnitude of the health impact: the meeting included at least one public claim of a 40% citywide reduction in overdoses tied to the pilot, but board members and staff did not present independent data to corroborate that specific percentage at the hearing. The board did not take a formal vote on the pilot at this meeting; public commenters asked staff to expand communications and continue coordination with community partners.