Fine the mask-less Metro-North riders

Who’s driving this train anyway? When it comes to wearing masks in passenger cars, the answer is President Joe Biden, who mandated their use on rails and planes.

But as far as enforcement is concerned, MetroNorth hasn’t engineered a clear strategy. As a result, anyone on the trains in recent weeks has likely noticed a rise in mask-less riders.

Hearst Connecticut Media columnist (and veteran commuter advocate) Jim Cameron points to a single piece of data that suggests why riders might be trying to breathe easier despite the restrictions. A Freedom of Information request of the MTA Police revealed that since September the sum total of tickets issued to mask rule violators is precisely zero.

That would be fine if all riders wore masks. Alas, that is just not true. We’ve taken note of masks slipping down the faces of conductors as well. Even many of the people following the rules have a pretty loose definition of “wearing,” as noses and/or mouths are often exposed.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Transit Authority (which has the Twitter tagline “MTA. Wear a Mask.

Stop the Spread”) is spending millions of dollars and countless staff hours scrubbing stations, trains, buses and subways. Even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention concedes such efforts have minimal influence on COVID numbers.

Sure, many people don’t believe in masks, and even more are weary from wearing them. But it is the law, and the reasons to wear them on the trains remain valid. The New York Post even editorialized in support of getting rid of all masks, ignoring the reality that their use would probably always make sense on jammed New York City subways.

Metro-North has certainly made masks available, offering 9 million to riders since the pandemic exploded here in March 2020. And a recent audit suggests 91 percent of riders have been wearing masks.

Aside from the reality that unworn masks might as well be socks, that means almost 10 percent of travelers earned at least a warning, and possibly a fine. A threat of a $100 penalty should convince anyone to just slip on a mask, but the threat needs to be real.

We don’t envy conductors and their colleagues about enforcing this mandate, but the rider that scoffs at masks could just as easily refuse to pay for a ticket. Moreover, the MTA directs riders who are uncomfortable about maskless fellow riders to report them to staff.

There are personal stakes for Metro-North workers as well. They are on the front lines, engaging one-on-one with countless people. “Travelers Far” is a memorial for MTA employees who have died of COVID-19, a tally that has passed the century mark.

These people didn’t ask for this responsibility to keep the public safe, any more than cashiers or wait staff did. They should enforce the rules, but ultimately, every one of us is driving this train, and the best way home is to do the right thing and wear a mask.

We don’t envy conductors and their colleagues about enforcing this mandate, but the rider that scoffs at masks could just as easily refuse to pay for a ticket.