SCRANTON, Pa. — The County of Lackawanna Transit System (COLTS) will still have "face coverings required" flashing across the front of its buses on Monday, even after the mask mandate officially ends in Pennsylvania.
That's because COLTS operates under federal guidelines, not state guidelines. The Federal Transit Administration is requiring masks on planes, buses, and trains until September 13.
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"I think it's safe. I'm fully vaccinated, and I still wear my mask on the bus and everything, no matter what," said Kelly Rogers from Old Forge.
COLTS officials say the main thing they're worried about, come Monday, is people not knowing that the end of the state mandate doesn't apply to federally funded public transportation.
"We're concerned that riders may be concerned, and that's why we're trying to get the word out as best we can. We have to our drivers and the people at the transit center. So we just want to ask our riders to bear with us and please cooperate because it's a mandate that's from the Federal Transit Administration, the TSA, and we need to comply with that. We must comply with mandates," said COLTS Executive Director Bob Fiume.
"I wasn't aware that because the buses are federally funded, that they were under federal guidelines and not the state guidelines. I don't have a problem continuing to wear a mask on the bus; I don't have a problem at all," said Ron Williams of Scranton.
Some riders tell us they feel bad for the drivers who have to enforce the rules and fear things will only get worse once the state mandate ends next week.
"They get on without them, and the driver's telling them they need to wear a mask, and they don't even pay attention to the driver. They argue with him, they curse him out," said Kelly Rogers.
COLTS officials say the federal guidelines could theoretically change before September 13, but they're not aware of any changes being made just yet.