German carmakers to resume production as lockdowns ease

German car factories will restart production from next week, after an easing in restriction measures across the country.

Carmakers including Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz have been implementing new social distancing measures to ensure the safety of their employees on the production line.

VW says it has adapted to ensure that workers keep 1.5 meters apart and will stagger shifts to change the way workers interact.

First to reopen will be Volkswagen’s plant in the German town of Zwickau and then in Bratislava.

Others across Europe and the United States will ramp up production from the end of the month, before factories in South Africa and South America come back online in May.

Almost all of VW’s plants in China have already resumed production and none have reported any new health concerns.

Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler also said that three of its German plants will resume production next week.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday (April 15) that the country has achieved a "fragile intermediate success" to emerge from lockdown and would also start partial reopening of shops next week and schools from May 4.