Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

National

Sun, October 1, 2023 | 17:04

Health & Science

Commuters still wear masks despite end of mask mandate on public transportation

Posted : 2023-03-20 17:04

Updated : 2023-03-21 15:04

People wearing face masks get on a bus at a stop in Seoul, Monday, on the first day of the lifting of the mask mandate for public transportation. Yonhap

By Jun Ji-hye

Most people kept wearing their face masks on buses and the subway, Monday, although the mask mandate for public transportation came to an end starting at midnight.

Coincidentally, the worst levels of ultrafine dust affected the country, also Monday, offering people yet another reason to remain masked up.

Health authorities lifted one of the last-remaining COVID-19 restrictions amid a COVID-19 downtrend, two years and five months after wearing a mask on public transportation (buses, subways, taxies and airplanes) became mandatory in October 2020 at the height of the pandemic

A young woman without a mask is seen standing up next to an old woman wearing a mask on a bus in Seoul, Monday, the first day of the lifting of the mask mandate on public transportation. Yonhap

Of the 12 commuters who were waiting for buses at a stop near Namseong Station in Seoul's Dongjak District in the morning, nine were wearing masks. One man, who was not wearing a mask while waiting for a bus, took a mask out of his pocket and wore it as his bus approached.

"I have become accustomed to wearing a mask for the last few years," Lee Myung-soo, a 52-year-old officer worker, said. "It feels as if something is missing when I get on a bus without wearing a mask."

Kim Seoung-joo, a 24-year-old student, said she kept wearing a mask because she still felt anxious about the risks of infection.

"The government said COVID-19 numbers such as the daily confirmed cases have decreased, but I think, it does not mean that the actual number of infected people has declined," she said. "I think there are still many people who are infected with COVID-19 but not counted in official statistics. So, I want to keep wearing a mask for the time being."

Lee Jeong-ja, 70, who was waiting for a subway train at Seodaemun Station in Seoul's Seodaemun District, said she will continue to wear a mask on public transportation regardless of changes in government policies because of concerns over her weak immunity.

"I think most people of my age do not want to take off a mask when they are in a crowd, as the level of immunity weakens when you get older," she said.

The trend of continued mask-wearing was also reflected in recent surveys.

In a Gallup Korea survey conducted between Jan. 31 and Feb. 2, 71 percent of respondents said they were willing to remain masked up indoors.

On the other hand, several people were seen enjoying the lifting of the mask mandate.

A woman in her 40s at Seodaemun Station, who asked not to be named, said, "I was surprised as many people were still wearing masks on the subway despite the end of the mandate. I don't want to wear a mask anymore as it is hard to breathe."

Most people on a subway carriage passing Sindorim Station are wearing face masks, Monday, although the mask mandate on public transportation ended starting at midnight. Yonhap

Still 'actively' recommended

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) noted that wearing a mask is "the most effective way" of preventing a respiratory tract infection, stressing that it is still "actively recommended" for people who use public transportation during rush hour as well as those who are in high-risk groups or have symptoms associated with COVID-19, to continue to wear masks on public transportation.

It added that the mask mandate still remains in place at hospitals, pharmacies and other vulnerable facilities such as hospitals for the elderly.

The government plans to announce its roadmap for lifting the remaining COVID-19 restrictions, including the remaining mask mandate and seven-day isolation mandate for virus patients, by the end of this month.

It is widely expected that the remaining restrictions are likely to be lifted after May when the World Health Organization (WHO) plans to discuss whether to end, what it calls, a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) regarding the coronavirus.

jjh@koreatimes.co.kr