Union speakers press CTA on operator training and inclusion in safety planning as CTA reports crime declines

Several public commenters spoke during the board’s public-comment period on June 10, pressing CTA leadership for clearer action on employee safety and training.

Antoine Trimmule and Edward Smith (identified by the clerk as representatives of ATU Local 241) told the board that the absence of a permanent CTA president has created a leadership vacuum and that union members have been excluded from safety planning and consultations. "The lack of a permanent president has created a vacuum in leadership that fails to address the significant issues of safety, violence directed toward employees and the riding public," one speaker said, urging more involvement of experienced operators and instructors in safety and training discussions.

The union speakers said training has deteriorated in recent months, that new hires sometimes enter service without adequate preparation, and that preventable accidents and operational challenges have increased. They asked the board to restore union participation in safety reviews and to provide responsive follow-up; staff offered to accept written statements and to continue outreach.

Phil Bronson, a local DBE electrical contractor, used his public comment time to allege historical wrongdoing affecting his firm and asked the board for redress, reputational corrections online, and compensation; staff accepted his written statement for follow-up.

CTA’s acting president responded in the public meeting with a broad operations and safety update. The acting president said weekend construction work on the Red Line and service adjustments show the complexity of CTA operations and highlighted ridership gains: "On our bus side, we're running 90% of the ridership that we did pre-COVID," the president said. On safety, the acting president told the board that major crime across the system was down about 40% in May 2026 year‑over‑year and that violent crime on the Red Line was down 77% compared with May 2025. The presentation credited multi-agency deployments with the Chicago Police Department and Cook County Sheriff and announced a new Safe Ride Specialist program that will deploy violence-intervention and crisis-intervention specialists as a non-police resource.

Board members asked for more routine numerical reporting on incidents and training (including frequency and content), a strategic plan or logic model for non-police alternatives, and clarity about safety leadership. The acting president said the vice president of safety (designated manager) currently leads safety work and that CTA plans to create separate chief-level roles for safety and for security. Directors requested a training overview and a follow-up that details how employees were engaged in preparation of the security report and training changes.

The board pledged further follow-up with union leaders and staff to address training and safety process questions.