O’Neil wasn’t initially drawn to the ins and outs of the CTA’s behemoth bureaucracy; it was the rider experience that fascinated him. As a journalism-school graduate stuck in an editing job and aching to write more, he kicked off the blog in 2004, covering “the crazy stuff you see on the train.” Within a year, readers began asking for more than just absurd stories—they wanted information. So O’Neil started dropping in on CTA board meetings and public hearings and soon was holding rare one-on-one interviews with CTA prez Ron Huberman.

On an average day, around a thousand people read O’Neil’s nightly postings (he doesn’t blog on weekends or during his day job in non-profit marketing). Regular content includes funny photos posted by site followers; CTA news tidbits; and archives with categories like “Scary Shit” and “Inappropriate Dress.” While O’Neil sticks to an anonymous moniker on his site (he’s the poster known as “the Tattler”), he operates the blog himself, with design help from his brother. This one-man operation is a surprise success even to O’Neil. “I really didn’t think it was going to be this big of a deal,” he says.

Because misery loves company, the Tattler has become a very big deal. Some readers, including Tom Sherman, publisher of local tech blog Windy City Bits (windybits.com), admire the fact that the site is “less personal and Kevin is more impartial [than most bloggers]. It’s not just about his stories.” But for us, those complaints are the biggest part of the site’s appeal—a virtual watercooler for those days when bitching with coworkers about the overcrowded, stinking train doesn’t provide enough catharsis.

—Madeline Nusser