CDC says US travelers can avoid wearing masks in outdoor transit hubs, ferries

The US CDC said 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. The change is the first in the CDC's transit mask policy announced in January and came after a lengthy review by the White House Office of Management and Budget's regulatory arm. The CDC said it made the change "because of the lower risk of transmission outdoors ... Masks are still required indoors on all forms of transportation" regardless of vaccination status. The change means people can take masks off outdoors while waiting for a train, in an outdoor courtyard of an airport or in open-air transit modes. The change came after the Biden administration held extensive discussions with transit unions and other groups. The administration is considering other modest changes to its indoor transit mask policies, including potentially allowing vaccinated airline workers to remove their masks in rooms not accessible to the public. The CDC in May said fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks outdoors and can avoid wearing them indoors in most places. In April, the Biden administration extended face mask requirements across all US transportation networks through Sept. 13 to address the spread of COVID-19.<br/>