Study: Mass transit not a risk for coronavirus transmission

NEW YORK - While you won’t get fined if you don’t wear a mask on mass transit these days, another study suggests that you may be stopped the spread of COVID-19.

A new report from researchers at NYU looked at data from 121 cities across the nation over a 10-year period, including New York City. The study found that public transit is not where viruses are spread.

“The subway car has air filtration every 60 minutes, it’s amazing how they’ve been able to clean the stations,” said Mitchell Moss, the Director of the NYU Rudin Center for Transportation and who helped author the study.

Moss said that with over 90% compliance when it comes to wearing masks, subway riders may actually be helping to keep the transmission rate down.

“The conditions of the subway today, the way in which people behave, 90-95% masks, means that is not a center of the spread of the virus compared to other social settings,” Moss said.

Despite reports that the ridership on city subways is still about 70% below pre-pandemic levels, the MTA insists that it’s safe to ride the rails. 

The MTA says that the report is the latest in a cascade of scientific reports proving the transit agency’s commitment to safety from aggressive cleaning and disinfecting to mandating masks for all customers and employees.