Chicago's Chicago Transit Authority board voted unanimously to keep Lester Barclay as its chair, extending the tenure of a leader who has drawn criticism both for how often he actually rides the system he oversees and for his skepticism toward the state's new regional transit overhaul. The vote came as one of the newly reorganized board's first official actions.
Barclay has served as CTA board chair since 2021, when then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot first appointed him to the post, according to the Chicago Tribune. Illinois transit funding legislation required a shake-up of the CTA's governing board, and on September 1 the terms of all sitting transit board members expired to make way for new appointees. Mayor Brandon Johnson reappointed Barclay to the reconstituted CTA board and also nominated him to the newly created Northern Illinois Transit Authority board, with both appointments approved ahead of the reorganization.
A Reorganized Board's First Move
The seven-member CTA board includes three mayoral appointees. Alongside Barclay, the incoming board includes returning members Michael Eaddy and Neema Jha, plus newcomers Nedra Sims Fears, Ann Kalayil, Oswaldo Alvarez and Tom Kotarac. Jha has served on the CTA board since 2022.
Eaddy is a pastor and returning board member, while Sims Fears leads the Greater Chatham Initiative. Kalayil is a Columbia College vice president, and former RTA director Tom Kotarac was selected for the CTA and NITA boards and led a NITA transition committee. Alvarez is an incoming CTA board member.
Questions Over Ridership and Reform Stance
Barclay's reappointment has not been without controversy. He has faced criticism for how infrequently he uses the CTA system and for opposing or questioning aspects of Illinois transit reform legislation. Transit advocate Nik Hunder said Barclay swiped onto the CTA system just 49 times in 2025, a figure Barclay did not dispute outright but pushed back on in substance, maintaining he uses the CTA about once a week and sometimes rides using his personal Ventra card.
Barclay defended his broader record on transit reform, saying he had raised concerns about NITA's increased control of CTA. Barclay has publicly questioned NITA's increased oversight of CTA decision-making, including in a Tribune op-ed, even as he says he supports transit-oriented development and the broader goals of reform.
NITA's New Powers Over CTA, Metra and Pace
The Northern Illinois Transit Authority now governs the CTA, Metra and Pace, having replaced the Regional Transportation Authority, which had overseen the three agencies since 1974, according to WBEZ. The new authority was created through a $1.5 billion bailout meant to stave off the roughly 40% cuts to bus and rail service that agencies had projected because of low ridership, inadequate funding and dwindling pandemic relief grants. Unlike its predecessor, NITA can directly plan service, bus and rail investments, and set fares across the three agencies.
NITA's own board includes 20 directors appointed by the governor, the Chicago mayor, the Cook County board president and the five collar counties. Under the new structure, the Chicago mayor appoints three of the CTA's seven board members. The authority is required to unify fares across the three agencies by 2030 and to deploy trained customer service representatives, known as transit ambassadors, by July 2027.
Some transit advocates and elected officials had pushed for new leadership rather than Barclay's return, arguing the moment called for a fresh face atop the CTA board. Barclay, for his part, framed his continued chairmanship around the scale of the changes ahead, saying the board has an opportunity to deliver transformative change that gives riders, employees and communities coordinated, safe, clean and accessible service. Separately, Metra's board elected Romayne Brown as its chair; Brown had previously served in that role from 2020 through 2024.
This is a developing story, and further details on the board's plans under NITA's expanded authority are expected in the weeks ahead.
