Advertisement

Spain to end mandatory use of face masks on public transport three years after pandemic began

A woman wearing a face mask sits on a train at the Atocha Station in Madrid (AFP via Getty Images)
A woman wearing a face mask sits on a train at the Atocha Station in Madrid (AFP via Getty Images)

Spain is set to end the mandatory use of face masks on public transport, nearly three years after the Covid pandemic broke out.

Health minister Carolina Darias said she would recommend the government remove the health regulation when the cabinet meets on February 7.

Masks will remain obligatory inside hospitals, health clinics, dentist offices and pharmacies.

Face masks first became mandatory in Spain in May 2020, when the country was reeling from the first wave of coronavirus.

A couple wearing face masks walk along  a beach in Cadiz, south of Spain, in July 2020, when masks were mandatory outdoors (AP)
A couple wearing face masks walk along a beach in Cadiz, south of Spain, in July 2020, when masks were mandatory outdoors (AP)

Unlike in the UK, face coverings had to be worn both inside and outdoors.

That was eventually rolled back in April last year, when they became mandatory onto on public transport and in healthcare centres.

Spain was able to recover from the pandemic thanks to vaccinating more than 90 per cent of its population.