Commuting to Work: Returning to Buses and Subways
Although jobs are starting to return little by little, the fear of being infected with the coronavirus is still keeping many people from riding public transportation including buses and subways.
However, a lot of people are wondering whether or not it is safe to begin riding again, or if it would be a recipe for disaster. We highly recommend that you do some of your own research into your own cities safety precautions; however, from a global standpoint, you can get an accurate idea of how safe it is to ride public transportation from the information below.
New Precautions
In cities like Chicago, a lot of safety precautions have been put into place to help keep passengers safe from infection on the bus and train. Seats are sterilized, some seats are sanctioned off so passengers can socially distance and even the stations themselves are sterilized.
Although you should do your own research about what your own community is doing to stay safe on public transportation, more often than naught it seems that safety precautions are being taken.
What About Ride-Share?
Ride-share apps like Uber and Lyft are a lot of people’s go-to’s for traveling to and from work. However, getting into a stranger’s car who may or not be taking the pandemic seriously is keeping a lot of people from using them.
There are still things that you can do in order to stay safe while using ride-share. For example, you can wipe down your own seat, avoid touching surfaces while in the car and wear a mask.
Also, you can ask if you can keep the windows open and make sure that the air conditioning is not circulating throughout the car since the virus can be airborne.
What Can I Do to Stay Safe?
Whenever you are on public transportation (or even out in the world in general) there are several precautions that you should exercise yourself in order to stay safe.
- Wear a decent mask the entire time. Make sure it covers your mouth and nose.
- Wash your hands before and after riding public transportation.
- Travel during non-peak hours
- Limit the amount of surfaces you touch.
- Socially distance
- If any area seems crowded, don’t go there.
- If you’re sick, STAY HOME!
The CDC also recommends that you have some supplies with you whenever you go outside your home.
Finally, the thing that is going to put you the most at risk of getting the coronavirus is other people being stupid. If people are not wearing a mask or are not socially distancing, get away from them and report them if at all possible.
But Is It Safe?
Thus far, there are no major outbreaks that have been tied to using public transportation. However, that doesn’t mean that there is no risk at all to using public transportation. At the end of the day, there is always going to be risk to using public transportation. It is about deciding for yourself whether or not you feel comfortable with the risks given your own precautions along with your communities.