Bavaria had pushed ahead, first abolishing the corona isolation requirement and then the mask requirement in local transport. Prime Minister Söder is now demanding that the federal government must also act quickly.
Munich (dpa / lby) - Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) is pushing for a quick end to the mask requirement in long-distance rail transport. "We find it contradictory that there is a mask requirement on the train but not on the plane - either completely or not at all," said Söder of the German Press Agency in Munich. "Therefore, the clear request to the federal government to give up the mask requirement in long-distance transport and to convert it into a voluntary recommendation. Preferably at the beginning of the new year." Masks have not been compulsory in local public transport in Bavaria since December 10th.
"We have a clear concept in Bavaria. We make appropriate decisions based on the risk situation," emphasized Söder. "Corona is under control." Of course there are other illnesses. "But you can't justify such a far-reaching restriction as the mask requirement because of the flu," argued the Prime Minister. "We recommend the mask for protection, but there is no longer a government obligation."
"We have learned that the greatest acceptance of corona measures is when they are consistent and understandable," said Söder. "The current decision to only stick to the mask requirement in long-distance traffic is inconsistent and hardly understandable. That is why the mask requirement should be eliminated here sooner rather than later."
The Bavarian cabinet had decided to phase out the obligation to wear masks on buses and trains in local transport on December 10 at the beginning of the month. The reason given was that the infection situation was stable and that the mask requirement was no longer appropriate and proportionate. Shortly before, Bavaria, together with three other federal states, had already decided to end the isolation rules for people infected with corona.
Because the federal states implement and handle corona measures, which are their sovereignty, differently, there has been a patchwork of different regulations nationwide for some time.
