CBS 2 Investigators: How Are CTA Buses And Trains Being Cleaned For COVID-19?
CHICAGO (CBS) -- If you share a work vehicle or ride public transportation what steps are being done to protect you from COVID-19?
And just how clean is the CTA?
CBS 2 investigator Dave Savini went digging for answers and looks at a new methods being used in New York City.
CBS 2 found New York has a new way to clean its subway trains; a two-step process Involving a special chemical spray at the end.
To protect passengers from COVID-19, which can live on surfaces, all CTA trains, buses and facilities are being cleaned.
And while the CTA said its cleaning methods are some of the most rigorous in the nation, CBS 2 found New York, which does similar cleaning, has now added an additional step with its metropolitan transportation office buildings and subway trains.
After the deep cleaning, crews are using a special anti-microbial spray called Gold Shield, which is supposed to provide a protective coating on all kinds of surfaces, including inside subway trains.
Brian Shlisky is the Chief Operating Officer from Gold Shield Tech in New York. He said the spray is also being used at nursing homes schools.
"We are now using it to cover or coat or protect the MTA subways, and subway stations, the bus depots and now we are about to go into the buses for the entire New York City transit," Shlisky said, but he added that it's not being done in Chicago.
"What it does is it attaches to a surface and it has a long carbon chain, which then breaks down things like bacteria and mold mildew etc. And protect surfaces that way. It doesn't leach. So it doesn't come off services. It will continue to protect services for long-term," Shlisky said.
Another company in New Jersey called Fleet Wash, which cleans facilities nationwide, is also using the Gold Shield spray after deep cleaning corporate and government fleet vehicles, and vehicles that are shared by multiple drivers.
They said COVID-19 concerns have created great demand for this kind of cleaning.
"We've cleaned thousand of vehicles since pandemic started. In that particular clip we are disinfecting the interior of a cab," said Chris Panek, Regional Manager Fleet Wash Inc.
The CTA would not confirm if it is looking into this product. But said it is exploring new products to clean and disinfect all the time.
