NEW YORK _ At least 83 MTA employees have died from coronavirus _ and agency chairman Pat Foye on Wednesday said he believes he's done everything in his power to keep his workers safe from the disease.
Foye declined to say at a news conference whether he has any regrets over the agency's response to the pandemic, which included a decision throughout the first four weeks of March to follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that said workers should not wear protective face masks.
"I regret that the CDC and the World Health Organization gave the advice that they did. I do regret that they gave that advice to the entire country," said Foye. "I think that everybody in the country regrets the failings of the CDC."
The virus has spread rapidly among New York City's front-line transit workers over the past six weeks.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has confirmed 3,048 cases of COVID-19 among its workforce of roughly 71,000 people, at least 2,636 of whom work in the agency's subway or bus divisions.
All but three of the MTA employees who have died from the disease worked in subway or bus operations.
MTA chief safety officer Pat Warren on Wednesday said the agency has "served as a leader in the transportation industry" when it comes to the response to the pandemic.
