There is a new call for protecting public transit employees from COVID-19 amid news they are disproportionately impacted by the virus.
The numbers in New Orleans appear to confirm those fears.
Drivers of New Orleans historic streetcars and the city's busses interact with passengers every day, and the Regional Transit Authority confirms one in eight have contracted coronavirus and three have died so far.
"Our members being out there driving the front line, many of them are now showing positive, and are quarantined and dying," Amalgamated Transit Union President John Costa.
He posted this video calling for barricades in driving areas and fewer riders allowed on board.
The Times Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate reported that in addition to the three RTA employees who have died from COVID-19, 69 have contracted it.
The paper also says that in early April the agency began building and installing plexiglass barriers on its buses and streetcars to protect drivers.
Previous steps included more frequent cleaning, canceling of fares to limit interaction, fewer routes and shorter hours.