Metro says all customers will be required to wear masks on trains and buses through January 18, following new federal rules from the Transportation Security Administration.

“We will comply fully and we ask our customers to continue wearing masks for their safety and the safety of our employees and communities,” WMATA spokesperson Ian Jannetta said in a statement Wednesday.

The extension comes as the highly transmissible Delta variant continues to drive up COVID-19 case counts across the country, posing a large risk to the unvaccinated. Metro announced yesterday it will require its 12,000 workers to be vaccinated against the virus or submit weekly negative tests.

The original TSA masking order, which covers airports, commercial aircraft, train stations, rideshares, taxis, buses, and commuter bus and rail systems, went into effect in February 2021 with an expiration of April before it was extended to September 13.

People with certain disabilities and those under 2 years old are exempt from the mask requirement. Those that don’t follow the rule can be fined $250, and penalties rise to $1,500 for repeat offenders.

Metro declined to provide DCist/WAMU with any information about if or how many tickets have been written but says it has not changed its posture of “compliance without conflict.” The transit agency has relied on social pressure, signage, and social media, and in-station announcements to be the main driver of the mask policy instead of police enforcement.

“We’re pleased that in a recent survey, approximately 90 percent of our recent customers reported near-universal compliance of the mask mandate,” Jannetta said in an email.

The Federal Aviation Administration has a zero-tolerance policy about mask-wearing, and says it has had nearly 3,000 reports from airlines of passengers refusing to wear masks, Reuters reports. Passengers have been kicked off flights and, in some cases, banned from flying.

This story has been updated to include a quote from a WMATA spokesperson.