Masks on Saskatoon buses remain mandatory, but no enforcement measures planned

People boarding a bus in Saskatoon will need to keep their masks handy, even after the public health order expires on Feb. 28.

Most city councillors at agovernance and priorities committee meeting Tuesday, voted in favour of keeping the status quo, while not supporting mask enforcementon buses with the help of security guards.

Saskatoon Transit will continue to focus on mask education and remind passengers of the requirement through signage and announcements, according to the city's information report about mask enforcement on the public system.

Operators have been able to track noncompliance on their buses using the Mobile Data Terminal (MDT), but drivers don't have to enforce mask use on passengers.

Free masks will continue to be available for people boarding the bus without one.

"A mandate without enforcement is how we've been operating our transit system, when it comes to masks, all the way along, including at times when it's outside of the public health order," Mayor Charlie Clark said.

"This is another very imperfect situation where we know we want to do the right thing to keep our buses as safe as possible and as comfortable as possible for people riding when it comes to the transmission of COVID-19, especially given the concerning news that the wastewater numbers are still high."

According to a spokesperson for Bus Riders of Saskatoon, the spread of the virus remainsa concern during peak hours when physical distancing is difficult on buses with many passengers on board.

"We believe the overwhelming majority of transit users support the continuation of mandatory masking after the public health order expires,"Robert Clippertonsaid during his presentation to the committee.

High mask compliance rate

The first time Saskatoon made masks mandatory on buses without an existing provincial public health order in place was on Sep. 1, 2020. Saskatchewan didn't introduce a provincewide mask mandate until Nov. 6, 2020.

The Government of Saskatchewan then lifted all public health measures again on July 11 last year.

However, city council reintroduced the mask requirement for public transit starting Sept. 1, 2021, while the province didn't re-implement its mask mandate in indoor public spaces until Sept. 17.

During the time of city-only mask mandates without the support of public health orders in place, there were no negative interactions regarding masks among passengers or involving the driver, according to city data.

Duringthe pandemic periods when masks have been mandatory on buses, the compliance ratemeasured through the MDT in Saskatoon was 99 per cent, according to the city.

Overall between 2020 and 2022, 15 negative interactions among people on the bus related to mask compliance were reported during periods in which provincial masking mandates were in place for public spaces.

No physical assaults have occurred regarding masking, according to the city.

"Although there is certainly some fracturing in society in general, when we look back we have had remarkably few incidents of conflict,"said Ward 7 Coun. Mairin Loewen.

Three councillors voted again status quo

The other three options for the committee to consider on Tuesday included an increase of enforcement measures, for example having security guards on all buses all the time, rotating enforcement on high issue routes or placing security personnel at transit terminals.

None of these possibilities were moved forward as a motion by city councillors.

"We all share a concern for the potential for a conflict between bus riders and operators," said Loewen.

"Reflecting back on other periods where we have had external security brought in to, for examplethe transit terminals, those situations, those circumstances did not yield the desired results."

Ward 1 Coun. Darren Hill, Ward 3 Coun. David Kirton, and Ward 5 Coun. Randy Donauer voted against the motion to keep the masking status quo for Saskatoon Transit.

All of them were concerned about potential conflict over the masking requirement without any measures to enforce it.

They also said riders might start toenforce it among themselves.

"I think we're asking for conflict on our buses,"Donauer said. "If we make masking mandatory on buses, we won't be able to enforce it. I don't think we have the ability or the means to do that in a safe and efficient way."

Saskatoon doesn't have a bylaw regarding mandatory masks on buses, according to the city's information report.

Tickets can only be issued under the current public health order, which is set to expire at the end of the month.

Involving Saskatoon Police Service might result in delays or costs, the report stated.

Hill said there was masking fatigue.

And Kirton called mandates without enforcement laughable as well as dangerous.

"A recommendation without enforcement leads people to their own volition,and hopefully some people and most people wouldunderstand the recommendation," said Kirton. "But a mandate without enforcement does leave it up to the riders."