Ventra latest Villain for CTA commuters

Back when the el was first constructed CTA riders could get to anywhere in the city for just a nickel. As recently as 1994 the cost of a ride was a dollar, plus 25 cents for a transfer.

Time and new technology have wrought a lot of changes for Chicagoans who use public transportation, but one tradition that never seems to go away is discrimination. The first women to be hired for rapid transit service did not come until August of 1974. Service cuts disproportionately affect poor and underserved communities, layoffs hit middle class CTA workers while incompetent upper levels of management remain untouchable.

The latest CTA screw-job for poor and middle class Chicagoans is the Ventra system.

Ventra is the brainchild of First Data, an Atlanta-based payment processing company that can boast of an F rating with the Better Business Bureau. The company is currently under investigation for a possible class action lawsuit for billing merchants after the end of a lease, among other complaints. According to the website Consumer Affairs, the company has a 1.1 rating out of a possible five stars. Let’s all be sure to thank Mayor Emmanuel in 2015 for yet another public/private partnership that will give us fits for years down the road.

CTA commuters got their first taste of the customer service to come when many reported having trouble activating their cards online. Some have claimed to be put on hold for as long as 34 minutes before giving up.

The most common problem people have experienced with Ventra is the double charge. If you carry your Ventra card in your wallet and wave it over the turnstile like a Chicago Card, there’s a chance that your debit card will also be charged, since the system picks up on them as well. I’ve already lost nine dollars to the double dip. You can avoid this by keeping the Ventra card out of your wallet. Carrying the card separately is a minor inconvenience, but it seems like an easily avoided oversight considering the half-billion dollar investment that our taxpayers are making.

Worst of all Ventra represents a tax on poor riders who don’t have access to the internet or debit cards for reloading. The cost of a single ride for those who opt out has gone from $2.25 to $3.

One day Ventra will go the way of the old CTA token and the nickel and be replaced by a sleeker, even more high-tech payment method. Hopefully the next system will prove more responsive for customers and more mindful of the most vulnerable among us.

Related articles

• CTA suspending Ventra deadlines (wgntv.com)
• Aldermen want Council hearings on CTA’s Ventra card problems (suntimes.com)
• CTA Puts Hammer Down On Ventra Contractor (chicago.cbslocal.com)