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Masks will be optional for passengers traveling on Syracuse University campus buses, trolleys, and other university-provided transportations, a university official announced Thursday.

SU is following guidelines from New York state, which lifted its mask mandate on public transportation on Wednesday, Vice Chancellor Mike Haynie said in a campus-wide email.
The state is in a “good place” regarding COVID-19, especially if people receive the latest booster, which targets the omicron subvariant BA.5, Governor Kathy Hochul said in a press conference Wednesday.

New York state policy has not changed regarding masking in health care facilities and masks are still required in all health care spaces at the Barnes Center at the Arch, Haynie added. The university ended mandatory surveillance testing this semester, discontinued the color-coded masking framework and stopped publicly providing COVID-19 data.

Despite SU’s policy transition to voluntary masking, Haynie said the university will continue to support those who choose to wear a mask on campus.

“We appreciate your ongoing commitment to the health and well-being of our campus community and our neighbors,” he said.