North Bay transit agencies, Santa Rosa airport respond to coronavirus outbreak

Transit agencies that serve the North Bay are kicking in measures intended to protect riders from the spread of the new coronavirus, named COVID-19.

Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit now is cleaning trains twice a day and plans to install on-board hand sanitizer dispensers early this week, according to The Press Democrat.

Golden Gate Transit now is using disinfectants for daily cleaning of the busses that connect Marin and Sonoma counties with San Francisco, and crews are scrubbing the ferry boats a second time weekly, the Santa Rosa newspaper reported. Ferries are also wiped with disinfectant throughout the day, according to the Marin Independent Journal.

Marin Transit uses Golden Gate Transit and other contractors for maintenance of its buses and other special services, the Marin newspaper reported.

“Our focus this week is to make sure our contractors are taking proper safety measures and proper cleaning efforts to make sure that they are addressing any issues related to the recent safety issues,” Robert Betts, Marin Transit operations and planning director, told the publication.

And Santa Rosa CityBus also is cleansing its regular and paratransit vehicles twice a day. Rachel Ede, a city deputy director who oversees transit , told the publication that it may reduce service if the outbreak cut into its workforce or ridership, similar to what happen, told the publication that it may reduce service if the outbreak cut into its workforce or ridership, similar to what happened during the Tubbs and Kincade fires in 2017 and 2019, respectively.

Similar to procedures being followed on New York's and Chicago's rapid transit lines, Bay Area Rapid Transit plans to remove from service and scrub down with hospital-grade cleaners any train cars used by a person suspected or confirmed to have the virus.

At Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport, cleaning crews have added some extra cleaning steps in the terminal and expanded access to hand sanitizer for visitors and employees, The Press Democrat reported.

Alaska Airlines, the largest carrier at the Santa Rosa facility, wrote on its blog that planes on the ground for more than an hour at its hubs now have all surfaces regularly touched by passengers cleaned with disinfectants: armrests, headrests, seatbelts, call buttons and vents, overhead bin handles and doors, and trays. The airline also has temporary halted in-flight recycling and refilling used cups, so employees aren't handling things passengers have touched.