The announcement was made by the executive mayor of Oslo, Raymond Johansen, during a press conference in the Norwegian capital.

The measures will be lifted at midnight on Wednesday and will align restrictions in Oslo mainly with national rules in force in Norway.

“As of tomorrow, a large part of the corona rules will be removed in Oslo,” the city’s executive mayor said at the press conference.

“The gradual and controlled opening of Oslo is a success. Many of the rules that the people of Oslo had to live with are now removed, and we will basically live with the same corona rules as people elsewhere in Norway, ”he added.

Local restrictions for indoor and outdoor events are lifted, as well as the limit of having more than ten people in private homes.

The easing of measures will also lead to a reduction in social distancing by half to one meter, and face masks will now only be mandatory on public transport and in taxis.

The new rules mix up stages three and four of the capital’s five-stage plan to lift the measures and reopen the city.

The decision to lift restrictions on coronaviruses comes a week after Oslo City Council decided to expand Covid measures after an 87% increase in infections two weeks ago.

READ ALSO: Oslo extends coronavirus measures after 87% increase in cases

Last week, however, 293 coronavirus infections have been recorded in Oslo, the lowest number since last fall.

From Wednesday the new measures will be:

• The ban on bringing more than ten people together in private homes is lifted.
• Local restrictions for sports, leisure activities and leisure clubs are removed and replaced with national limits.
• Bingo halls, bowling alleys, arcades, playgrounds and other similar places may reopen.
• Local capacities for stores, malls, gymnasiums, museums, galleries and spas are removed.
• The requirements for face masks in stores, gyms, restaurants, etc. are lifted. Face masks will always be mandatory in taxis and public transport.
• Russian celebrations will be banned until July 4.
• Homework will also be encouraged to continue until July 4.
• Alcohol can be served until midnight in Oslo until July 4, although national restrictions change to allow alcohol service later.
• The recommendation to avoid unnecessary public transport will also be maintained.
• Social distancing of one meter

The current national rules that will apply to Oslo after the lifting of the measures are as follows:

• Indoors, 50 people are allowed at events without fixed assigned seats and 200 people at events with fixed designated seats.
• For private gatherings in public places, such as restaurant reservations, up to 20 people can meet indoors and up to 30 outdoors.
• Outdoors, 600 people are allowed in a public place, with fixed seats allocated, divided into three groups, for example in a stadium. Once national rules for Covid events and certificates change, that number will rise to 5,000.