Ottawa, Jun 23 (IANS): Passengers travelling by train in Canada will be required to wear masks starting from Tuesday to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spread.

"This is necessary as the economy is gradually reopening and VIA Rail sees an increase in ridership and as the safety and well-being of both our employees and our passengers remains our top priority," Xinhua news agency quoted VIA Rail, Canada's national railway service, as saying in a statement on Monday.

According to the statement, passengers will have to wear a mask throughout their whole trips except when eating and drinking, as well as when physical distancing is not possible in the station and when boarding.

However, it also said passengers that have trouble breathing due to medical conditions, infants, small children, and those who are unable to take off the mask without assistance will not be required to wear a mask.

VIA Rail said that masks will be required for customer-facing employees as well.

Canada has reported a total of 103,418 COVID-19 cases, with 8,494 deaths.