Covid Brits work railways trains
Brits back to work and railways are full. Travellers told to wear face masks and to practice social distancing.
As from today, the lockdown eases and many Brits are back to work following the Covid outbreak. You can see that the railways are full and the Tube has returned to 70 percent of normal levels.
People have decided to go back to work and those who travel to work should wear face masks on trains and buses to prevent the spread of Covid. However, the majority of people have not been able to get hold of masks. Not only that, but several panicked passengers also complained that trains are packed and some mainline services ran with half the usual number of carriages.
The lockdown has eased but people have been told to carry on practicing social distancing. A lot of floor stickers have been installed on trains in European cities so people can assure staying two meters apart. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan tweeted that London’s doing an incredible job slowing the spread of Covid, but if we’re to prevent a disastrous second wave we must all continue to stay at home as much as possible and avoid any unnecessary travel, especially on public transport. He says to not give up now and let’s keep on going.
Passengers have been told to reserve a seat in advance if they have to travel or they won’t be able to board. To prevent overcrowding, commuters should book a slot to enter the local railway station. Security guards were also deployed at other stations to prevent rush hour surges. Grant Shaps, the Transport Secretary said that he understood that booking first is not convenient for passengers. But it should be done to stop the virus from spreading more.
Some rail companies on commuter routes are also proposing to allocate time-restricted ‘travel slots’ to enforce staggered commute times. Operators have agreed that train guards will no longer walk up the aisles checking tickets. However, commuter users complained that while there were more trains, the services were not up to scratch. The tube is busy during rush hour, especially from east London to central London. Most of the passengers are blue-collar workers.
Then Giovanni Cefaliello tweeted from his London-bound train today: ‘Hardly any passengers going towards London have face masks on, I would say maybe one in every 50 have one on! That is not good enough!’ Edward Reeves, who traveled to London on a Greater Anglia service tweeted: Why was the 0443 service to LST from Colchester this morning only a 4 carriage? It’s usually an 8 carriage. Social distancing is difficult enough without halving the capacity of a train’.
Mr Khan’s transport chief Heidi Alexander today urged people to stay away from public transport as many more people were due to go back to work. The government suggests using cars, walking, or cycling if you can. For those who can work from home, it’s suggested to work from home. For those who should go back to work and those who need to use train service should limit contact with staff and ticket machines by downloading e-tickets to smartphones, should wear face coverings during the journeys. Operators have the power to close platforms if it’s too crowded. They also can use social media to warn the passenger so they can stay away.