Starting Dec. 1 Hawaiians and tourists will not be affected by capacity restrictions at bars, restaurants, and gyms, announced the state’s governor Tuesday.
On Monday, Gov. Ige announced plans to loosen some statewide COVID-19 restrictions on the next state of emergency extension, which must be enacted before Nov. 30.
“We recognize we need to relax restrictions,” Ige said during an interview on the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s “Spotlight Hawaii” on Monday.
According to the governor, some of the measures that have proven to be effective in the fight against COVID-19 will remain unchanged.
“This includes Hawaii’s Safe Travels program, the mandatory indoor mask mandate statewide, the requirement for vaccination or testing for state executive and county workers.”
Ige praised Hawaii residents for helping get the pandemic under control.
“The sacrifices we have all made have prevented even further loss of life,” Gov. Ige said. “Hawaii continues to have amongst the lowest rates of infections and fatalities in the nation due to this COVID-19 pandemic.”
Also, the governor will no longer require county mayors to coordinate emergency rules, leaving them in charge of their own COVID-19 regulations.
Honolulu Mayor confirmed social distancing requirements will be lifted as well as some rules regarding large events.
Social distancing mandate will be lifted at Oahu restaurants, bars and gyms, but patrons are still required to present proof vaccination or a negative test to be permitted entry.
Also, Maui’s Mayor said that restaurants can now operate at 100% capacity as long as customers can produce a vaccine or negative COVID test.
Safe Travels programs are here to stay
The governor also would intend to keep the Safe Travels program in place as long as COVID-19 is a threat in other states.
In the future, it could be repurposed to help with tourism management. For instance, it might be used as a reservation system for people to schedule visits to tourist attractions.
The ultimate goal would be to better manage tourist flows across communities and highways said the governor.