Sherae Honeycutt

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Original Post

Masks make all the difference. Starting Monday, you’ll be required to wear them in public around Kansas City, Missouri. 

Some organizations are having to adjust, while for others it will be business as usual.

“Wearing is caring,” Kansas City Area Transit Authority spokesperson, Cindy Baker said.

The wheels on the bus will keep going around, and the riders on the bus will need to put on their masks.

• Face masks will be required in public in Kansas City, effective Monday, Lucas orders

“We will be reminding them that it’s important to keep those masks on,” Baker said. “We will not be kicking people off the bus. This is going to be a soft opening as far as we’re concerned. We will be reminding people it’s important to have a mask, and if they don’t have one we’ll tell them how to get one.”

KCATA will be giving away thousands of them to riders making it easy to mask up.

“You can use your own bandanna,” Baker said. “There’s all kinds of ways you can make your own face coverings. You don’t have to have an official mask.”

At Kansas City area YMCAs wearing masks is just part of their day to day. Mark Hulet, their Senior Vice President of Operations and Risk says they’ve had a mask mandate since they were allowed to reopen.

“They’re required to wear a mask in common space, but while they’re working out whether they’re in the pool or whether they’re on fitness equipment they can take their mask off just from the risk management perspective that we’ve spaced everyone out accordingly,” Hulet said.

Hulet says sometimes people don’t want to wear a mask, but it’s a must have.

“They either don’t have a mask or they have chosen that they want to test those waters. We refuse their entrance,” Hulet said. “This is our ability to say that you have to have a mask. We are a private organization, although we are a community organization. We can require the mask.”

He says he hopes people see wearing a mask is safer risking getting yourself or someone else sick.

“This is pretty common practice and no matter where you’re going people have masks. It’s not something out of the ordinary that the mayor has asked, or any jurisdiction around the metro has asked,” Hulet said. “So, it’s something that’s just the right thing to do, and we’re going to continue to do the right thing in Kansas City.”

If you ride the bus and are wondering where you can get a free mask there should be more information coming Monday about when and where you can find them.