RAPID CITY, S.D. (KBHB) – City officials announced Wednesday that a third driver for Rapid Transit has tested positive for COVID-19, and it’s sufficient enough to warrant suspension of service by the city transit busses.

The total suspension of bus service will begin this Saturday and last for two weeks. It affects Rapid Ride AND Dial-A-Ride services and routes in Rapid City.

That third driver followed all mask and hand-cleaning protocols, and drove Rapid Ride routes between May 18-21, the day before he began experiencing symptoms of COVID-19. He was confirmed positive for coronavirus on Tuesday.

Mayor Steve Allender says the finding of a third COVID-19 case among the drivers makes it important to halt the service so that busses can be sanitized, and that all drivers can undergo a two-week quarantine period for public safety.

Transit manager Megan Gould described the cleanliness protocols that the drivers follow, and plans to sanitize all of the busses during the suspension.

Gould says with a halting of bus services, people should reach out to elderly and disabled neighbors who depend on daily bus service, and help take them where they need to go.

Allender says it’s hard to predict the way that the growth of case numbers will progress over the next month or so.