Kyiv to stop all public transportation on March 23

Kyiv will halt access to public transportation for non-critical personnel on March 23, Kyiv mayor Vitalii Klitschko said in a video statement on March 21.

According to the mayor, only people with special passes, whose work is indispensable to the city, will be allowed to use public transport until the end of the quarantine.

“From Monday, March 23, public transport in Kyiv will service only employees of enterprises operating in critically important spheres of life of the city,” he said in a video message. He added that new public transportation routes will be added for their use.

Klitschko also said that such restrictions do not apply for personal transport, but urged all to stay in their homes. 

Earlier in the day, Arsen Avakov, Ukraine’s interior minister, wrote in a Facebook post that only people working for emergency services, pharmacies and food stores would be able to use public transport in Kyiv, starting March 22.

Avakov also warned that nationwide restrictions will become even tougher in the coming days and express support for the “total” quarantine in the country to try to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Already, since March 17, Ukraine has shut down the metro subways in Kyiv, Kharkiv and Dnipro – the only three cities with such transportation. It also instituted an international travel ban by airline, train, and bus. Ukraine also banned domestic public transport between cities, also by airline, trains, and buses.

Moreover, restaurants, bars, gyms, salons, and shopping malls are closed along with schools.

Transportation in private cars will be allowed. Moreover, supermarkets and other food stores, pharmacies, banks, gas stations, post offices, and parcel companies remain open.

Klitschko urged police to enforce compliance with the ongoing restrictions and asked the Ukrainian government to ensure that Ukrainians who have been evacuated from other countries stay in their homes for 14 days.