On December 2nd , the Austrian government announced that in view of the expected results of the current second round of “lockdown” measures, it has decided to relax some regulations from next Monday (December 7):
The current all-day curfew is imposed from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. the next day.
Compulsory schools and kindergartens reopen, requiring students over the age of 10 to wear masks in schools; high schools and universities will continue to adopt the remote teaching mode in grades other than graduation grades.
Retail and service industries can be opened to meet the requirements of epidemic prevention, but the staff in the store need to wear masks and maintain a safe distance. Passenger flow restrictions should refer to the principle of 1 person per 10 square meters.
In public places, non-family members must maintain a distance of 1 meter; in closed public places, masks must also be worn.
Museums and libraries can be reopened.
The limit on the number of gatherings has been relaxed to two families, that is, up to six adults and six children. However, during traditional festivals and New Year, gatherings and celebrations for 10 people can be held.
Outdoor sports venues will be open from December 24, which means that skiing, skating, cross-country skiing and other activities can be carried out if the epidemic prevention requirements are met. Among them, ski resort cable cars are also allowed to operate, but physical contact is prohibited.
Other areas remain the same for the time being, but if the development of the epidemic in Austria allows at that time, places, including entertainment and leisure institutions, restaurants, hotels, etc., are expected to resume operations from January 7 next year. At present, restaurants in Austria only provide delivery services.
According to Austrian Chancellor Kurz on the same day, the infection rate of an average of 100,000 residents in the country in seven days fell from about 600 a few weeks ago to 250 today, indicating that “the blockade period is very difficult, but it has also effectively prevented overloading intensive care beds”.
He reiterated his prediction that the Austrian people are expected to return to normal life in the summer of 2021, while stressing that all people must continue to stay united and do their best to ensure that the number of infected people does not rebound over the next six months.
