In a response to a recent federal mandate, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson announced his commitment to enhancing safety on the city’s public transportation system, the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA). The federal government has warned that without improvements, the city risks losing critical funding.

Mayor Johnson emphasized that the safety of the CTA is a principal concern and assured that he is actively collaborating with the transit authority to ensure it receives the necessary resources and investments. “We need to examine the current security framework for public transportation,” he stated, highlighting the collaborative roles of the Chicago Police Department and the Department of Public Health in maintaining rider safety.

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Johnson’s comments came on the heels of a letter from the Federal Transit Administration addressed to both him and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker. The letter outlines a tight deadline, urging the implementation of safety measures by next week.

Expressing his stance, Mayor Johnson remarked, “I don’t need a letter from the Trump administration to dictate my priorities. We’ve been clear about what we aim to achieve, and politicizing these issues won’t solve them. We should focus on a collective approach to addressing these challenges.”

“I don’t need a letter from the Trump administration to tell me what my priorities are, because we’ve already made them clear what our priorities are, and we certainly, you know, do not need an administration that continues to politicize, you know, on what really could be addressed collectively,” Mayor Johnson said.

The FTA is pointing to the fiery attack on a woman on a Blue Line train last month who is still recovering from severe burns.

The man charged in that incident had a lengthy criminal history, and the FTA blames local laws for the attack.

“We need our safety,” rider Olivia Perez said. “If we’re trying to go somewhere, we need deserve to have safety and be safe in an environment that is supposed to be safe for us.”

Some riders ABC7 spoke with Tuesday feel more safety measures are needed on public transportation, while others feel this may be an overstep by the federal government.

“Absolutely, they’re overstepping, yes,” rider Elizabeth Ortiz said. “Chicago police has been doing their job as best they can, but with budget cuts that also restricts what we can do for what can be done.”

November crime numbers reviewed by the ABC7 data team show crime on the CTA is up, but so is CTA ridership.

Violent crimes on buses, platforms, stations and trains is up 6.6% from the yearly average over the 3 prior years.

Overall crime is also up 7.7%.

The mayor said he is considering things like a unified security system, altering CPD’s involvement on the CTA and more services for those experiencing homelessness.

Meanwhile, the CTA said it will respond to the FTA within the requested timeline.