HARRISBURG, Pa. — COVID-19 is traveling fast throughout local communities and from state to state, with New York City being hit especially hard. However, that isn't stopping one bus company from suspending their services due to the outbreak.
Passengers can still travel Greyhound Bus routes from New York City, the epicenter of the outbreak to Pennsylvania. This is leaving Pennsylvanians confused on why this is happening, and even causing a candidate running for a seat in the State House to speak up.
"We can not ask the residents of Pennsylvania to sacrifice in order to stop the spread of the coronavirus if we're going to continue running buses from New York City into Scranton," said the former Regional Director for PennDOT and now candidate for State Representative, James May.
May voicing his concerns with several videos on Facebook, and his call to action posts are being heard.
Just one of his videos being viewed over 750,000 times with around 25,000 shares, people are concerned over community spread of COVID-19. But, Greyhound is still transporting passengers from state to state with a bus station in Harrisburg having daily trips back and forth to New York City.
Greyhound sending a statement to FOX43: "No different from airlines and railways who continue to operate as essential services, Greyhound is an essential service provider and during emergency crises, we may transport health workers, truck drivers, emergency personnel and other essential workers between Pennsylvania and New York. We have proactively limited schedules and frequencies in the area in order to assist in slowing the spread of COVID-19. We have also enhanced our detailed sanitation guidelines in our terminals and on our buses. For more information about how Greyhound is protecting its passengers and employees, please visit www.greyhound.com/peace-of-mind."
"If we are going to sacrifice in order to stop the spread of the coronavirus, we have got to stop the spread of these buses going in and out of New York City the number one hotspot," said May.
In response to the Greyhound matter, PennDOT said they share the concern regarding the interstate bus travel and encourage everyone to stay home and stay safe. PennDOT said interstate bus travel is regulated at a federal level, and states do not control the scheduling of interstate bus transportation.
Other major bus companies -- like Megabus, have suspended all services in and out of New York City, according to their website.
And locally, Bailey Coach is no longer running buses under Governor orders. They say they're keeping workers busy though offering private car transportation mostly to hospitals, and sanitation services.
Greyhound says keeping both riders and drivers safe is a top priority. They have increased their cleaning measures and are encouraging customers to practice social distancing and spread out when they travel.
Part of Greyhounds 'Peace of Mind Policy' they are re-issuing tickets to riders who no longer wish to travel at this time and have already purchased their tickets.
You can find more information on their website about tickets and refunds.