Posted on July 14, 2020 in News

Rock Region METRO COVID-19 Cases To Date

Position Work Location Date METRO Notified of Positive COVID-19 Result Case Status Last Worked at METRO (Prior to Positive Case Result) Number of Employees in Close Contact Other Close Contacts Other Close Contacts Notified Cleaning/Disinfecting Process Completed
Links Operator Links Paratransit Bus 6/8/20 Returned to Work 6/4/20 2 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 7/14/20 Returned to Work 7/3/20 5 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 7/20/20 Returned to Work 7/14/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 7/20/20 Returned to Work 6/27/20 2 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 7/21/20 Returned to Work 7/15/20 1 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 7/23/20 Returned to Work 7/17/20 10 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 8/19/20 Returned to Work 8/11/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 9/5/20 Returned to Work 8/31/20 0 3 N/A Yes
Maintenance Employee METRO Maintenance Department 9/18/20 Returned to Work 9/16/20 0 0 N/A Yes
Administrative Employee METRO Administrative Department 9/21/20 Returned to Work 9/14/20 2 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 11/6/20 Returned to Work 11/5/20 4 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 11/12/20 Returned to Work 11/12/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Operator METRO Operations 11/21/20 Returned to Work 11/20/20 1 N/A N/A Yes
Administrative Employee METRO Administrative Department 11/23/20 Returned to Work 11/19/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Administrative Employee METRO Administrative Department 11/28/20 Returned to Work 11/25/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Administrative Employee METRO Administrative Department 11/30/20 Returned to Work 11/25/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 12/14/20 Returned to Work 12/12/20 2 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 12/21/20 Returned to Work 12/20/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 1/4/21 Returned to Work 12/31/20 0 N/A N/A Yes
Administrative Employee METRO Administrative Department 1/14/21 Returned to Work 1/13/21 1 N/A N/A Yes
Links Operator Links Paratransit Bus 1/16/21 Returned to Work 1/15/21 0 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 1/18/21 Returned to Work 1/17/21 1 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 1/19/21 Recovering at Home 1/15/21 0 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 1/21/21 Recovering at Home 1/14/21 3 N/A N/A Yes
Bus Operator METRO Local Bus 1/25/21 Recovering at Home 1/11/21 0 N/A N/A Yes

Rock Region METRO was notified of its second known COVID-19 positive case for a METRO employee Tuesday, July 14. The first was Monday, June 8.

METRO is engaging in the same tactics used with its first positive employee case of COVID-19: METRO is ensuring the employee who tested positive for COVID-19 is self-quarantining for 14 days, contacting METRO employees who had close contact with this employee and keeping METRO riders informed on all positive COVID-19 employee cases.

To read the statement from METRO’s first COVID-19 case, click here.

METRO will continue to keep riders abreast of any COVID-19 cases among its staff members, providing as many specific details as possible while also protecting employee confidentiality rights, as required by law and as a best practice. In addition to the actions outlined above, METRO continues to take appropriate measures to protect the public’s health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, as summarized below:

It has been a standard practice to sanitize vehicles; offer on-board hand sanitizer stations to riders and hand sanitizer stations at the River Cities Travel Center (the downtown Little Rock local bus station); offer an on-site, full-time janitor at the travel center; and offer METRO drivers and other employees hand sanitizer stations and disposable gloves at each METRO property prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. These measures continue. In addition, METRO:

• Purchased special machines to fog sanitizer product into fleet vehicles nightly and has increased its fleet sanitation schedule, wiping down all high-touch surfaces daily.
• Increased sanitation procedures at each METRO property to reduce the risk of virus exposure for employees.
• Is screening employees with mandatory beginning-of-shift temperature checks.
• Provides and requires all employees to wear face masks in shared spaces, including transit vehicles.
• Limited passengers per bus and paratransit vehicle to encourage social distancing.and installed sneeze guards between drivers and fareboxes.
• Placed new ion filtration systems on buses. These systems improve indoor air quality by reducing airborne contaminants; oxidizing volatile organic compounds; reducing airborne particulate matter; killing inactivated bacteria, mold and viruses; and enhancing the effectiveness of filtration media and evaporator coils.
• Requires passengers to wear a face covering that fully covers the nose and mouth while riding.
• Maintained public restrooms and introduced portable handwashing stations to riders at the River Cities Travel Center.
• Installed new UVC emitters to air handling equipment on METRO property. These devices inactivate microbial organisms (bacteria, viruses and molds) that can trigger a range of symptoms from watery eyes and headaches to severe allergy and asthma responses. The recirculating air in the HVAC system creates redundancy in exposing microorganisms to UVC, ensuring multiple passes so the light energy is effective against large quantities of airborne microorganisms.