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Is It Safe To Ride LA Metro In The Age Of Coronavirus?
Coronavirus concern is everywhere. We're stocking up on hand sanitizer, toilet paper and guns. We're Googling it at a wild rate. Cancel culture has a whole new meaning.
As people navigate the COVID-19 landscape, there have been questions about the safety of taking public transportation.
We talked to county officials from the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Department of Public Health about what they're doing — and what riders can do — to protect themselves and others.
Here's a quick guide:
If you're sick, stay home. That's the single best protection against coronavirus — and any other infectious disease, according to Barbara Ferrer, director of L.A County Public Health.
"[L.A. Metro] can do all the cleaning in the world, but if sick people continue to come out, use public transit, cough on other people, sit closely to other people, stand closely to other people, they'll just continue to [spread infections]," she said. "Not just the possible spread for COVID-19 but the spread of influenza and other kinds of infectious diseases that are in our midst."
Keep your hands clean. Use sanitizer (with at least 60% alcohol) after touching common surfaces like handrails, turnstiles, handles and poles.
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Do less with your hands. Use your hip or back of your hand when passing through turnstiles and avoid touching your face with unwashed hands.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
