Today's corona news in 60 seconds
+++ Lockdown light +++ BVG's 10am ticket boost +++ Senat support for digital firms +++ The stats +++
Berlin-Every weekday at 11am come to the Berliner Zeitung English Edition for the latest corona/Covid-19 news at a glance.
🚥 First, the official corona stats for Berlin (tallied Sunday, 1 November)
🟢 R number: 1.10 (0.96 Thursday)
🔴 New infections per week: 166.1 / 100,000 inhabitants (155.6 Thursday)
🟢 Share of Berlin ICUs occupied by Covid-19 patients: 13.9 per cent (12.2 per cent Thursday)
Total number of corona deaths: 261 (+ 8)
Source: Berlin's coronavirus status page
The lowdown...
Zweite Deutsche Welle
It's the day we hoped wouldn't come, but it's finally here - from today Germany is in 'lockdown light' (for this month at least), with entertainment venues closed, new limits on people meeting each other, and restaurants and bars going take-away only. Shops, schools and kitas are still open though. Check out our rules breakdown for all the details.
Bahnsinn
If you're a regular public transport user, then here's one good thing we might be able to thank corona for - BVG's 10 o'clock ticket has been made valid for an hour longer during November. Ticket holders can now travel in the AB tariff zone between 9am and 3am for a reduced price, which is intended to tempt passengers away from travelling during the pre-9am rush hour.
Ay Carambar
Another week, another Mitte party getting shut down by the police for breaking the corona rules. This time the incriminating establishment was at Alexanderplatz - believed by the Berliner Zeitung to be Carambar, which incorporates a restaurant, bar and events venue - and officers broke up a gathering of around 300 people on Halloween night (Saturday). Police initiated charges against the venue owner for the breach.
Senat support for digital companies
In an attempt to offer some relief from the impact of today's new lockdown, the Berlin Senat's economic department is launching a scheme to support "operational digitalisation projects" with grants of up to €17,000. The programme is intended to help the city's economy come out of the pandemic as strongly as possible, and is open to Berlin-based full-time self-employed people and small- or medium-sized companies with up to 249 employees. If that sounds like you, you can apply or find out more via the funding website from this afternoon.
In case you missed it...
Are you a non-German speaker feeling like you've not been kept fully in the loop on Berlin's rules and restrictions during the pandemic? If so, last week's editorial on why Berlin needs to do better at talking the talk as an international city could be for you. Read it here.
That's all for now folks. Stay safe!
Yours,
The Berliner Zeitung English team
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