Authorities in St. Petersburg, Russia’s second-largest city, say they are set to tighten restrictions as they struggle to contain a surge in coronavirus cases.
Included in the measures announced on October 18 is the introduction of a health pass to regulate access to events with large crowds.
Boris Piotrovski, the city’s deputy governor, said that beginning on November 1, people will need to show a QR barcode to get into large sports or cultural gatherings with more than 40 people attending.
People who have been fully vaccinated or who have had a negative COVID-19 test in the past 72 hours will be eligible to receive the QR code.
Starting on November 15, the restrictions will also apply to swimming pools, fitness centers, theaters, cinemas, museums, and circuses.
Restaurants and most shops will be included beginning on December 1 in the city of some 5 million residents.
Cafes in stations and airports, pharmacies, and shops selling food will be exempted from the restrictions.
The city has reported the nation’s second-largest number of new infections after Moscow.
Since the start of the pandemic, about 667,000 coronavirus infections have been confirmed in St. Petersburg, with at least 22,964 deaths, according to official data. During the past 24 hours, nearly 3,100 infections have been confirmed.
The move in the large northern city comes as Russia registered another record figure high, 34,325, for coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours.
The national daily death toll over the period hit at 998, a slight dip from the 1,002 deaths recorded on October 16
Russia is the hardest-hit European country in the pandemic, with a total of 224,310 deaths recorded since the start of the outbreak. Many experts say the actual toll is likely to be much higher.
Authorities blame the fact that just 32 percent of Russians are fully vaccinated as officials seek to overcome widespread mistrust of the jabs.
National authorities have so far rejected a nationwide lockdown, preferring instead to leave it up to local regions and cities to decide.
Comparatively urbanized western Russia and developed areas along the Pacific Coast such as Vladivostok and Khabarovsk have seen the highest infection rates.
Several other regions in Russia have already imposed various QR code requirements.
