CHARLOTTE, N.C. — "Effective immediately, masks are optional on Charlotte Area Transit System vehicles for customers and employees," CATS announced Tuesday.
CATS cited the federal judge ruling in Florida on Monday that struck down the Biden administration's mask mandate for public transportation, including airplanes. While the ruling is still being reviewed, the Biden administration said the order would be no longer in effect.
As of April 2, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services' COVID-19 dashboard, 76% of adults in North Carolina are vaccinated and 38% of children and teens are vaccinated. Data collected during the two-week period between March 20 and April 2 showed no counties in North Carolina are in a high-level risk of illness and strain on the health care system, though six counties are in the medium-risk level. Mecklenburg County is listed in the low-level risk
Other public transit systems followed suit once the ruling came down, including the Concord-Padgett Regional Airport, the Rider Transit Center and on the buses in the Concord area. On Wednesday, Gastonia City Transit announced masks would be optional, too.
Despite these decisions, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is still recommending people wear masks in indoor public settings when social distancing is not possible since COVID-19 remains a threat to public health.
WCNC Charlotte is part of seven major media companies and other local institutions reporting on and engaging the community around the problems and solutions as they relate to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a project of the Charlotte Journalism Collaborative, which is supported by the Local Media Project, an initiative launched by the Solutions Journalism Network with support from the Knight Foundation to strengthen and reinvigorate local media ecosystems. See all of our reporting at charlottejournalism.org.