Chicago Transit Authority

The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is a public transit agency in Chicago, Illinois, United States and one of the three service boards of the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA). It operates the Chicago "L"rapid transit system and CTA bus services.

The CTA was established as an independent governmental agency by the Metropolitan Transportation Act passed by the Illinois General Assembly on April 12, 1945. It started operations on October 1, 1947, upon the purchase and combination of the transportation assets of the Chicago Rapid Transit Company and the Chicago Surface Lines streetcar system. In 1952, CTA purchased the assets of the Chicago Motor Coach Company, resulting in a fully unified system. As of 2026, the CTA is one of the three service boards overseen by the Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA), along with Metra commuter rail and Pace Suburban Bus.

In 2025, the system had a ridership of 319,160,900, or about 1,101,600 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2026.