We’ve seen record ridership numbers for DART, which have been mirrored across the country as gas prices have increased. In Chicago, where the cash-strapped CTA has also seen increases but can’t afford to buy new rail cars, the transit agency has a plan: Remove seats from existing cars.
The CTA expects to cram 25 to 50 more passengers onto trains that normally hold 90 riders if it takes the seats out and eliminates the aisle. The seatless cars will be used only during the busiest travel periods; an eight-car train could have as many as two cars without seats. The agency will start using the new trains later this year.
DART apparently has no plans to do this, and the agency added bigger capacity cars earlier this summer. The new cars seat 25 more passengers than normal cars, and DART says standees can add another 75 more.
