77 replies to this topic

[KevinKorell]

Bloomberg, 5/12/21:

 

 

   Working From Home for Some Threatens Mass Transit for All    

 

 

 

While President Joe Biden pushes for $2.3 trillion in infrastructure spending with billions for mass transit, operators of commuter rail and buses are fretting over a burgeoning work-from-home culture that threatens to depress revenue for years after the pandemic.

 

Read

[KevinKorell]

Alton, IL Daily News, 6/7/21:

 

 

 

  Study says pandemic will have long lasting impact on habits  

 

 

 

A new study indicates COVID’s impact on transportation habits in Illinois and around the country could linger far into the future.

 

Article

[KevinKorell]

AM New York, 6/11/21:

 

 

   CDC says U.S. travelers can avoid wearing masks in outdoor transit hubs, ferries    

 

 

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday it will no longer require travelers to wear masks in outdoor transit hubs and in outdoor spaces on ferries, buses and trolleys, due to the lower risk of coronavirus transmission outdoors.

 

Way ahead of you, CDC... just saying.    Story is here.

[KevinKorell]

Railway Age, 6/15/21:

 

 

    Final in a Series: From “Commuter Railroads” to “Regional Railroads”  

 

 

Transit generally is now on a form of life-support from Congress: Federal operating assistance under the COVID-19 relief statutes that were enacted during the past year. Ridership on local rail transit and buses is generally recovering better than on commuter railroads, which reported lower numbers like Metra in Chicago at 12% of pre-COVID levels and 30% on New Jersey Transit. 

 

 

Article

[CNJRoss]

RT&S, 8/23/21

 

Covid-19 cases spiking once again – several passenger agencies requiring employee vaccinations

 

 

With Covid spiking again, several transit and rail passenger agencies have issued vaccination mandates for employees.

 

SNIP

 

In addition to Metrolinx, MTA, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority, and Amtrak are among those passenger agencies that have mandated vaccinations for their employees. Authorities say that the reason for the recent spike is a combination of the number of unvaccinated Americans, the more contagious Delta variant, and the refusal of many to wear masks. However, nearly all transit agencies in the United States require masks to be worn by passengers and crew while aboard trains and buses.

 

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

Government Technology, 8/24/21:

 

 

    Can America’s COVID-Battered Commuter Rail Make a Comeback?   

 

Ridership on commuter rail declined as much as 90 percent for some services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Operators are now exploring options to bring back not only riders who sat out the pandemic, but new customers as well.

 

Article

[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading, 9/9/21

 

APTA data used to track transit riders’ post-pandemic expectations

 

 

Recent data from the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) showed that ridership dropped 79% in 2020 as compared to 2019.

 

While the numbers are slowly recovering, the truth is that transit riders today are remarkably different from riders who took transit before COVID-19, according to a new white paper.

 

Today’s riders need, want and demand different things from public transit.

 

Continue here.

[KevinKorell]

Railway Age, 3/16/22:

 

 

   Rail Transit and COVID-19, Two-Year Mark  

 

 

It has now been two years since we felt the impact of the COVID-19 virus and our lives changed, possibly forever. Ironically, the news came on Friday the 13th: the day that millions were told that we would all need to wear masks, classroom education would cease and “virtual” learning would take its place, and many jobs would terminate immediately. Some older workers found themselves “retiring” on the spot, whether they liked it or not. The virus had its effects on our trains and our transit, too. Ridership plummeted everywhere, and service was curtailed.

 

 

Read this very comprehensive overview of transit providers throughout the USA and Canada, how they look 2 years into COVID.