Wary commuters seen as vital in revving up state economies
Masks are mandatory on subways and buses in Washington. San Francisco is betting longer trains will help riders social distance. Crews disinfect New York’s trains daily — stations twice a day — and are testing ultraviolet light devices to see if they kill COVID-19 on surfaces.
As states gradually reopen, transit agencies are taking steps to coax back passengers who’ve been told for months to avoid just such tight quarters with strangers — an effort that will ultimately influence the economic recovery.
“For certain businesses teleworking isn’t really an option, so we still need to figure out ways to get those people to work,” said Ed Mortimer, vice president of transportation and infrastructure at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Especially in urban areas, where many people don’t own cars, mass transit will be crucial to reviving economies. But enticing passengers back on board may require adding trains and buses so people can space themselves further apart — adding stress to agencies reeling from declining ridership and rising cleaning costs.
The one-two punch of lower revenue from fewer riders and steeper cleaning costs has devastated the finances of New York City’s transit system, which has left only a quarter of the nearly $4 billion in federal aid received in March. Those funds could be exhausted next month, and the agency is urging Congress to approve additional emergency aid.
“This is going to be an ongoing issue that agencies are definitely going to need some financial assistance from all levels of government to get through this difficult time,” Mortimer said.
Health experts say that the very nature of mass transit presents risks.
“The greatest risk occurs when you’re in close contact — within 6 feet — with someone from outside your household for a prolonged period of time,” said Hilary Godwin, dean of the University of Washington’s School of Public Health. “Really crowded buses and crowded subway systems obviously are things that we’re going to be worried about.”
Rush-hour crowds won’t appear overnight, Godwin said. People will return to their offices gradually, while companies and governments in many places continue to ask people to work from home if possible.
IBM Corp. polling of nearly of 30,000 U.S. adults between mid-April and early June found more than 1 in 5 typical transit users said they would no longer do so, and nearly a third said they’d use it less, the company said in an email.
If a lack of ridership forces service cuts, the effect could be widening the divide between those who have the flexibility to work at home or the means to drive cars, versus those who must report to work and have no alternatives to public transportation.
“It just becomes more likely than transit agencies will say maybe we just need to provide less frequent service, and then the people who really rely on it have a big mobility problem,” said Deborah Salon, associate professor at Arizona State University’s School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning.
Ultimately, COVID-19 may force long-term changes in commuting patterns and infrastructure demands.
“We know that at the end of the day that the public has to feel confident and feel good about riding transit, that it’s safe for them from a health standpoint,” said Paul Skoutelas CEO of the American Public Transportation Association, the transit industry’s Washington trade association.
Transit systems have taken a range of actions to win back riders after ridership in some cities dropped by 90% or more during the initial wave of the pandemic.
The Bay Area Rapid Transit system in San Francisco has been running longer trains throughout the day to prevent crowding on its cars. All riders and employees on New York’s subways are required to wear masks and the system is handing them out to people who need them.