RTA Universal Fare Card - Again

Here we go again.

Of course, a universal fare card was first promised in 1974 by the RTA Citizens Committee for Better Transporation.

And on December 18, 2005, Steve Schlickman, RTA Executive Director said
the RTA’s “goal” is to have the “universal fare card available to Metra riders in six months.”

It’s a bit past June, 2006, but no one should be surprised.

What's another year?

That universal fare card idea was trotted out 33 years ago during spring of 1974 during the referendum campaign.

That's when Steve's father Gene and I were fighting the referendum by appearing on Milton Rosenberg's Extension 720, among other places.

The universal fare card pledge wasn’t as outrageous as

Transportation, when and where you need it, throughout the region.

But, it is no wonder the “kNOw RTA” campaign committee’s name and campaign resonated with the public.

The more people learned about RTA, the more likely they were to vote against the referendum.

The RTA tax hikers’ pollster, Roger Stanley, is reported to have found the opponents were picking up one percentage point a day as election day approached.

The referendum passed by less than 13,000 votes with paper ballots.

No recount was allowed.

McHenry County Blog is loaded with articles about local politics this weekend.