The Max C. Lyon Transit Center in downtown Fairbanks is opening to bus riders next week, according to Lanien Livingston, public information officer for the Fairbanks North Star Borough.
Public transit riders have been locked out of the transportation hub — a warm building with benches and a restroom — for the better part of two years due to Covid-19 even as the borough has been operating an indoor playground at the Carlson Center since November and hockey games with spectators have taken place at the Big Dipper Ice Arena.
A sign on the door of the bus depot on Friday said that “members of the public should interact with FNSB employees only if there is no other way to reasonable conduct essential business.”
In Anchorage, bus riders have been allowed indoors at the Dimond Transit Center since last June, according to officials. The city’s downtown Transit Center is closed pending renovations.
Fairbanks is one of the coldest cities in the U.S. and right now is the coldest time of year. Low temperatures over the weekend are predicted to hit 30 below zero.
So why were bus riders being made to wait in the cold while children and hockey fans are allowed to gather indoors in other Fairbanks North Star Borough facilities? It’s not clear. Questions to borough officials, including Borough Mayor Bryce Ward, emailed on Wednesday were not answered as of Friday afternoon. Livingston sent a brief email late Friday saying the depot would open next week and that the mayor and chief of staff “were already discussing this very topic.”
Andrew Kunayak, Gabriel Penatac and Marci Walsh sat outside on a bench waiting for a bus on Friday morning with temperatures in the single digits.
A security guard poked his head out the door. When asked about the policy for bus riders to wait outside, he said there was nothing he could do.
“They make us sit on the bus with this mask on,” Walsh said. “They can let us sit inside with the mask on.”
Under borough rules, face masks are optional but the federal government requires face masks for all transportation networks, including public transportation, through March 18, 2022, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Federal Transit Administration.
Last June, Borough Mayor Bryce Ward began to relax public health mandates and restrictions on taxpayer-funded public services that were put in place for public health in connection with the coronavirus, but the public transportation system continued with stricter rules due to the federal mandates.
However, it’s not clear where those requirements say that bus riders cannot occupy a building. Air travelers are allowed to wait into terminals at the Fairbanks International Airport where social distancing is not enforced.
According to the CDC website, the reason for the face mask requirement is to make it safer for travelers indoors when social distancing gets difficult: “Traveling on public transportation increases a person’s risk of getting and spreading Covid-19 by bringing people in close contact with others, often for prolonged periods, and exposing them to frequently touched surfaces.
“Air travel often requires spending time in security lines and busy airport terminals. Travel by bus, train, and other conveyances used for international, interstate, or intrastate transportation poses similar challenges. Staying 6 feet away from others is often difficult on public transportation conveyances. People may not be able to distance themselves by the recommended minimum of 6 feet from other people seated nearby or from those standing in or passing through the aisles on airplanes, trains, or buses.”
The Metropolitan Area Commuter System is operated by the Fairbanks North Star Borough using mostly revenues from the federal government, according to budget documents. The bus fare is normally $1.50 for a ride. Fares have been suspended since March 2020.
Contact staff writer Amanda Bohman at 907-459-7545, at abohman@newsminer.com or follow her at twitter.com/FDNMborough.
