SPRINGFIELD, Ill.—To meet with state lawmakers here, Michael Churchill, 24, left his home south of Chicago at 3 a.m. Wednesday, took a rideshare to a commuter rail station and switched to the L train to get downtown before catching an Amtrak train to the state Capitol Building.

He has a vision condition that makes driving difficult. But the regional transit system that made his trip possible faces service cuts if the state legislature doesn’t pass a funding bill to close a massive budget gap in 2026.

For Chicago resident Terry Sanders, 65, funding the transit system is just as important for the environment as ensuring there is clean and affordable energy to power that system. Opposing that funding on the grounds that it’s a Chicago problem makes no sense to her.

“They act like air pollu

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