COVID-19 update; Friday, May 8
Summary
From the L.A. County Department of Public Health: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its stance on face coverings in early April; days earlier the New York MTA had reversed course after thousands of its workers tested positive for the coronavirus. Cloth face coverings are not a substitute for physical distancing and washing hands and staying home when ill, but they may be helpful when combined with these primary interventions. With traffic reduced due to the pandemic, the city of Beverly Hills approved the full closure of Wilshire Boulevard to speed up the work. My educated guess is that we will see the rise of transit as a social service.” Jeffrey Tumlin, the executive director of the SFMTA, acknowledged that not all of the 100-plus [bus] routes lost to coronavirus are necessarily going to return. But he strikes an optimistic tone: He believes that a transit network that focuses more narrowly on frequent, more reliable service along fewer routes may serve the city better in the end.