Uber Canada will no longer require drivers and passengers to wear masks during rides as of Friday, though the ride-sharing company says it “still strongly” recommends them.
The company will still require masks in Quebec, which earlier this month extended its mask mandates, expected to expire in April.
“In accordance with provincial public health guidelines, masks will no longer be required when using Uber in Canada (except Quebec) effective this Friday, April 22,” an Uber spokesperson wrote in an email to Humber News.
However, the ride sharing service still recommends wearing a mask while sharing a ride.
“As per Health Canada’s advice, we still strongly recommend wearing a mask depending on personal risk factors and infection rates in your area,” the spokesperson wrote.
In the United States, Uber and its main competitor, Lyft, said on Tuesday they would lift their mask mandates. Passengers can still cancel a ride if they wish but might have to pay a cancellation fee.
Uber drivers in Canada can still ask passengers to wear a mask in the vehicle and cancel the ride if the individual disagrees with wearing it.
The decision comes a month after mask mandates were dropped on most public indoor places in Ontario.
But many specialists think this is not the right time to drop safety requirements.
“With the increasing level of COVID infection within the community, I think that wearing masks indoors and in enclosed spaces such as taxis and during transit, is an important protection measure,” said Ryerson University Health & Safety Professor Thomas Tenkate.
“Masking is really one of the last lines of defence we have, and without this, I would expect that infection rates will continue to increase,” he said.
Tenkate said if Uber drops its mask requirement, it will be a bad decision from both a public health perspective and an occupational health and safety perspective.
“In a taxi or Uber, this is an enclosed space that a passenger is in for a substantial period of time, sufficient to become infected. It is questionable whether the car air conditioning system will do much to filter out virus particles, and it is also the driver’s workplace,” he said.
In a Twitter statement, the Toronto-based company Beck Taxi said it would continue to require masks in its vehicles to protect vulnerable riders.
“We know that many, including the most vulnerable, rely on the safety and security of for-hire services like ours, and drivers depend on us to make informed decisions when it comes to masking policies,” the statement said.