COVID reporting coming to close
In the last report of its kind, the Illinois Department of Public Health announced that the CDC is reporting that all counties in the state are at Low Community Level for COVID-19.
For the seventh consecutive week, no counties were at high level this week. After May 11, the CDC has announced it will stop tracking and reporting COVID-19 cases at the community level. IDPH Director Dr. Sameer Vohra welcomed the news that the World Health Organization has declared an end to the global health emergency for COVID-19 that was in place since Jan. 30, 2020.
Counties have low cost of living
With inflation still taking a toll on Illinoisans’ budgets, a new study shows the Illinois counties with the lowest cost of living.
According to the website Stacker, Gallatin County in southern Illinois has the lowest cost of living. Rounding out the top five were Pulaski, Edwards, Alexander and White counties.
Funds for Chicago Transit Authority
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration has announced that the Chicago Transit Authority will receive $200 million to buy new rail vehicles to update its aging fleet.
The grant is one of six that will help transit agencies replace aging passenger railcars, improving reliability, safety, and accessibility. With this federal support, the CTA will buy up to 300 new electric propulsion passenger railcars to replace older railcars that have been operating since the 1980s.
