Use of Masks in São Paulo’s Subway, Trains, and Buses Will Be Compulsory

SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL – The governor of São Paulo, João Doria, announced on Wednesday, April 29th, that as of May 4th, the use of masks will be compulsory for passengers in the subway, trains of the São Paulo Metropolitan Train Company (CPTM) and inter-municipal buses managed by the state government .

The same measure will also apply to drivers and users of transportation and taxi apps. As of the same date, the capital city government will publish a decree mandating the use of masks on city buses.

Cities in the metropolitan region, such as Guarulhos, and municipalities in the interior of São Paulo and other states, now ban access to public transportation without protective equipment. There was still uncertainty if there would be enough officials to enforce the rule.

According to Doria, should passengers fail to wear masks, they will be warned verbally by public transportation inspectors. He also stressed that the equipment can be homemade.

The subway company will need to take action to prevent crowding. Although there has been a drop in traffic of over 70 percent, there are still large crowds of passengers on platforms and trains during rush hours.

As a result, agents at the Operational Control Center (OCC) will be required to make a passenger count on the platform to expedite the arrival of the next train should they note that the train arriving will not be enough to empty the platform. Each train can carry up to 2,000 people.

The subway is also performing tests using UV lights to sanitize the trains, using a technology that can kill viruses left in the cars.

Bus use drops

On Wednesday, in an interview with radio Eldorado, the municipal secretary of Mobility and Transport, Edson Caram, said that the use of collective transportation stands at 30 percent. “We have 30 percent of the population using public transportation and this average has not changed. The volume that increased was travel by car,” he said.

“When we realized that there is a higher density of people, we place more vehicles,” he said, recalling that Mayor Covas had already signed a decree flexibilizing the schedules of essential businesses. The measure was taken to prevent crowding in public transportation during rush hour. “About 300,000 people have changed their transport schedules. ”

According to Caram, public transportation companies were advised to use a curtain to isolate employees and provide sanitizer gel to everyone working during the pandemic.

In addition, the mayoralty is considering putting up new roadblocks in the city. Actions of this kind have already taken place this week at Radial Leste, on Inajar de Souza Avenue (north zone) and Teotônio Vilela Avenue (south zone). According to the City Hall, the roadblocks allow health professionals to approach and give out informative material to drivers.

The secretary also denied that there is any possibility of resuming anti-pollution measures such as vehicle rotation during quarantine or increasing the price of bus fares.

Isolation rate

The governor again criticized the rates of isolation that remained constant throughout the week. The Intelligent Monitoring System (SIMI) showed that only 48 percent of the population complied with quarantine guidelines on Tuesday, April 28th.

According to Doria, “there is no condition of relaxing isolation with a 48 percent rate of isolation and the risks of a collapse in public care in hospitals”. “Nothing will be done, in terms of relaxation, without explicit guidance from the Health area,” he said.

São Paulo confirmed Covid-19’s 1,000th death on April 19th, 32 days after the first case. Since then, the number of infections has more than doubled in the state, after only eight days.

David Uip, the coordinator of the Center for Contingency of the disease in São Paulo, said the numbers provided do not surprise the São Paulo government. “The scenario was outlined in February, what we projected is proving to be true,” he said.

Source: Estadão Conteúdo