Why not just wear a mask on public transportation? Your questions, answered.

(iStock/Washington Post illustration)

A federal judge in Florida on Monday struck down a federal mandate requiring travelers to wear face coverings on planes, at airports and in other transportation settings, causing confusion at airports across the United States.

The judge’s ruling upended the Biden administration’s plans to extend the mask mandate through May 3, and the decision has left municipal transit agencies to decide whether to require travelers to wear masks. Public transit agencies in the D.C. region rescinded the requirement, but airports in Chicago, New York and Philadelphia said Tuesday that they would keep the mask mandate in place. Meanwhile, Lyft, Uber and Amtrak announced masks would be optional for customers.

What questions do you have about the mask mandate? Four Washington Post reporters who cover the pandemic, travel and transportation answered you questions on Wednesday.

Read the Q&A below.

Looking for more? Read some of our recent coverage:

• Do I still need to wear a mask on a plane? 5 questions, answered.
• 6 questions about travel after recovering from covid, answered
• End of federal transportation mask mandate greeted with confusion, relief

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Teddy Amenabar, an editor on The Post’s audience team, produced this Q&A.