While mask mandates enacted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have been lifted in many public gathering places, the federal mandates remain in effect for most public transit systems — especially ground transportation such as buses, subways, commuter and long-distance passenger rail lines. Several factors will likely determine the timelines for when officials will consider ending those mandates, says Fulton Schools Research Professor Steve Polzin, a civil engineer who specializes in transportation. Overall, transportation planners will be confronted with a number of changes in the public transit picture that have resulted from the long pandemic period, he says. It’s likely that as much as 10 percent of the pre-COVID workforce won’t be returning to offices. Other trends show people may choose alternatives to public transit and that concern about urban crime could keep riders away from mass transit systems, Polzin says. (Photo: Pixabay)