Metra loses 800 thou can you imagine how much more they would have lost if they didn't let armed security officer's on the train

The NATO summit at McCormick Place cost Metra $800,000 in lost revenue from customers who stayed away and extra security expenses like bomb-sniffing dogs, the commuter railroad agency said Wednesday.

Some Metra board members said they were surprised the costs weren't higher, based on the number of cautionary measures imposed by theU.S. Secret Service, which coordinated security for last month's meeting of world leaders.

"To be honest, I thought it might be three or four times as much as that figure," board member Jack Schaffer said, adding he was glad only one of Metra's 11 lines had to be shut down for any period of time.

The South Shore Line, serving northwest Indiana, also expects a loss of about $100,000, General Manager Gerald Hanas has told officials of the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District.

Metra's chief financial officer, Thomas Farmer, is expected to present the NATO costs to Metra's board members at a meeting Friday.

"We serve a great city, and occasionally we have to pay the bill," Schaffer said.

Board member Mike McCoy said he also thought the loss in fares from riders who stayed away would be higher — perhaps in the half-million-dollar range. Also adding to the costs were the Secret Service's "ever-changing" security requests, he said.

"I don't think we had the option to say no," McCoy said.

According to Metra, it lost $400,000 in passenger revenue related to the May 20 and 21 summit.

Metra also racked up about $600,000 in additional operating expenses. That amount includes $100,000 for operations, $200,000 in additional costs for Metra police and $300,000 for hiring outside security firms.

Metra expects the federal government to reimburse it about $200,000.

Most Metra Electric District and South Shore trains were allowed to run under McCormick Place, but many stations on the lines were closed, and Monday afternoon trains were canceled.

Numbers weren't yet available, but Metra said ridership was half the normal levels on Friday and Monday, May 18 and 21, as workers took the days off or worked from home.

Ridership was also reportedly low Saturday and Sunday, with visitors to downtown staying home.

Metra beefed up personnel at stations and platforms for days in advance of the summit and hired private security firms to help. The agency also asked suburban police departments to assist at outlying stations.

Dogs patrolled trains, and police screened passengers and searched bags at Union, Millennium and LaSalle Street stations and the Ogilvie Transportation Center.