FTA opens inquiry into Illinois DOT's safety oversight of CTA

The Federal Transit Administration on March 17 launched a safety management inspection into the Illinois Department of Transportation's (IDOT) safety oversight of the Chicago Transit Authority's transit-rail system. 

The FTA also issued a special directive that orders IDOT to take 11 actions to improve its oversight of the CTA, including implementing the FTA's recommendations from an April 2025 audit of IDOT's oversight of the CTA rail system, said FTA officials in a press release.

The inspection aims to determine the root causes of IDOT's oversight deficiencies, while the special directive and the 11 actions are intended to quickly address those deficiencies, they added. IDOT has not made sufficient progress in addressing long-term safety concerns at CTA, and the directive is necessary to address unsafe conditions, said FTA officials.

Specifically, the federal administration determined that IDOT has limited onsite presence, weak accident investigation governance, ineffective corrective action plan management and minimal use of enforcement authority.

In an X.com post on March 17, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker called the FTA's action a "sham investigation." 

The inspection into IDOT comes a week after the CTA submitted a revised security enhancement plan to the FTA for review. The FTA on Dec. 8, 2025, ordered the CTA to submit a safety plan to address assaults on transit workers and other public safety concerns.