RAILS Reduces Delivery Quarantine Requirement to 24 Hours

RAILS is reducing the quarantine requirement for materials moving through delivery to 24 hours effective Wednesday, February 24. The latest research shows that COVID-19 mainly spreads through respiratory droplets in the air. While some studies have shown that the virus stays alive on surfaces, they have not proved that people can catch the virus from touching those surfaces. See the Latest News/RAILS & RAILS Libraries section of the RAILS COVID-19 Pulse Page for more information on these studies.

RAILS continues to take a number of steps to ensure that our delivery processes remain as safe as possible for both our delivery staff and for the staff at our member libraries. All of our drivers are required to wear masks when delivering materials. Delivery bins and sorting areas are cleaned on a regular basis. See the complete list of precautionary measures taken by RAILS delivery staff on the pulse page.

The 24-hour quarantine time only applies to materials transported through RAILS delivery. We continue to advise each RAILS library to make decisions on any additional quarantine periods you may feel are necessary, based on your own unique situation. Relevant studies and reports are available on our pulse page to assist you in your decision making. If you have any questions about RAILS' new quarantine period, please contact Deirdre Brennan.