CHICAGO (CBS) — Nearly 500,000 people ride Chicago Transit Authority ‘L’ trains every day.
“It’s very convenient, efficient, cost-effective for sure,” said Adrian Vasquez.
The CTA also advertises its ‘L’ trains as a green way to travel—helping the environment by keeping polluting cars off the roads.
“I think it’s much better for the environment, and it’s one of the reasons I take the train,” said Jan Boudart.
But running the trains takes a lot of power—with the CTA’s electric bill totaling $36.2 million last year.
And while the average CTA commuter may not think about it, all that power has to come from somewhere. And it turns out more of the electricity that powers the trains is generated by fossil fuels that warm the climate than by renewable sources like wind or solar power.
Primarily, the CTA’s power comes from nuclear power plants—a total of 67%. Another 22% comes from fossil fuels, while only 11% comes from…
