Mask Mandate on Public Transport to Be Lifted This Month

Korea is expected to lift the mask mandate on public transportation on March 20.

"We've been discussing with experts lifting the mask mandate on public transportation since the COVID situation has been under control over the past month," health authorities said Thursday. The decision will be made in a meeting next week.

That would mean masks only have to be worn in high-risk facilities such as hospitals, pharmacies and nursing homes.

In a meeting held on Tuesday, most experts on an advisory board agreed that there would be no problem with lifting the mask mandate on public transportation, and some even favored lifting it completely.

Earlier the government said masks must be worn indefinitely on subways and buses because they are also used by high-risk groups.

But it relented and began considering further easing COVID regulations as new daily cases have dropped below 10,000 over the past week for the first time in 35 weeks.

One expert on the advisory board said, "Most people will no longer be inconvenienced in any situation once they can use public transportation without masks."