PORTLAND, Ore. — TriMet has ended its masking requirement, making face masks optional for riders on buses and MAX trains. C-Tran made a similar announcement on Tuesday morning.
The new rule also applies on the Portland Streetcar, which is owned by the City of Portland but operated in a partnership with TriMet.
"With the CDC still recommending that masks be used on transit, we do welcome their continued use and ask that everyone be respectful of others," the transit agency said in an email. "For the time being, we will continue to make masks available on board for those who want them."
Riders may continue to see mask-related signs or hear mask mandate announcements on buses and trains in the coming days, Trimet said, because it will take some time to fully update the signs and announcements on all the vehicles in the fleet.
The move comes one day after a federal judge in Florida struck down the Biden administration's nationwide mask requirement for public transportation.
Several airlines announced on Monday that they would no longer require masks on flights, and the Port of Portland said it would drop the mandate at Portland International Airport after being informed that the TSA would no longer enforce it.
The decision Monday by U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle in Tampa, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) improperly failed to justify its decision to mandate masks on public transit and did not follow proper rulemaking.