The German cities of Berlin and Hamburg and several federal states will introduce a mask for public transport from Monday.
Ten of the sixteen German states now want people to cover their mouths and nose in the fight against the coronavirus.
As of next week, people in Berlin will have to wear mouth and nose protection on buses, metros and trains, but probably not in shops.
Hamburg mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD) announced a mask requirement in shops, when visiting weekly markets and in public transport in the Hanseatic city.
Previous recommendations for wearing face masks against the further spread of the corona pandemic were not enough, Tschentscher said in Hamburg.
Other states also decided to make it compulsory to wear mouth and nose cover when shopping and public transport, namely Schleswig-Holstein, Hesse, Baden-Württemberg and Saxony-Anhalt.
Saxony has already introduced a mask requirement, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Thuringia and Bavaria recently announced it.
So far, there is no nationally uniform line: Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and the Prime Ministers had just agreed last week to wear face masks in buses and trains and while shopping.
