Germs and Public Transportation in Chicago

The Chicago Tribune reports:

If you're standing on the "L," you hang onto the pole.

On the bus, you pull the string to signal your stop.

Sure, you might be leery of possible germs on CTA surfaces. It might even have occurred to you that you're at some risk of catching a cold, a virus or worse.

But how much of a risk? RedEye hired a local laboratory to randomly test some CTA surfaces for cleanliness and harmful bacteria. Though the tests conducted along the Red Line, Brown Line, No. 66 and No. 151 routes revealed no staph or E. coli bacteria cells, approximately 57 percent of the tested surfaces registered as dirty enough to breed bacteria that can make you sick, according to a report by environmental scientist Slade Smith.

Surfaces tested on Red and Brown Line trains averaged "dirty" readings, though Red Line cars were found to be significantly dirtier than those on the Brown. Among the dirtiest surfaces tested were the upholstered seats on trains and the stop cord on one bus.

The bottom line: Despite the CTA's efforts to keep buses and trains clean, tests show that the potential for bacteria buildup on the "L" and buses is nothing to sneeze at.

"Would I let my kids touch these surfaces and put their fingers in their mouths? No," Smith said. "Even if you clean and sanitize constantly, there's only so much cleaning that you can do with this many riders in a dense social space."

Riders who don't wash their hands between riding the CTA and eating are potentially at risk for colds, the flu, cold sores and food-related illnesses, such as salmonella poisoning, Smith said.

How ironic,the government which is supposed to be the regulator of health and safety runs a public transportation system which is a breeding ground for germs.That's government for you.