Mayor W. Reed Gusciora today announced new restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19 as transmission rates in Trenton have doubled each of the last three weeks.

Mayor Gusciora’s amended State of Emergency declaration now includes the following instructions, which will remain in effect from Nov. 16, 2020 through Dec. 5, 2020:

• All Trenton businesses, including restaurants, bars and grocery stores must close at 10:00 p.m. daily. Gas stations may stay open only to dispense gas.
• Restaurants and drive-through businesses may be open for pickup or delivery until 11:00 p.m., provided that no parties are allowed to congregate inside or outside of the establishment.
• All city residents are encouraged to remain indoors after 10:00 p.m.
• All city residents should wear masks and practice social distancing techniques as recommended by the CDC by avoiding large crowds, and, whenever possible, keeping a distance of six feet from other people.
• All city residents are strongly encouraged not to have large family gatherings on Thanksgiving and to avoid hosting visitors from states that are on the Governor’s travel advisory list.

Trenton’s transmission rate is currently 44.2 cases per 100,000 people, which exceeds both the state and county rates at 29.3 and 28.9, respectively. Trenton has had a total of 4,598 COVID-19 cases with 80 related deaths.

“It’s clear the second wave is here and has hit the Capital City especially hard,” said Mayor Gusciora. “Our transmission rates may even be higher now than they were in the spring. While we believe these new restrictions will help, we won’t get past this crisis unless our residents wear their masks and practice social distancing. No more excuses about COVID-19 fatigue: the virus never gets tired, and neither should our residents and businesses when it comes to keeping this city safe.”

“It is critically important that when we see cases rise throughout our city, county and state that we are extremely cautious and we social distance, wear masks and limit indoor gatherings as much as possible,” said Dr. Kemi Alli, Chief Executive Officer of the Henry J. Austin Health Center. “If not, our path will follow sister states such as North and South Dakota, and Montana which are currently in dire straits.”

While transmission rates have risen across all age groups, a quarter of all hospitalizations over the past month are comprised of individuals age 30 and below. The greatest source of transmission has been indoor contact, and residents are advised to wear masks even around friends or relatives who are visiting.