Advertisement
The Victorian Transport Association says thousands of truck drivers are crossing the state’s border each day without a permit and shunning testing requirements designed to shield against the NSW coronavirus outbreak.
The peak industry body estimates between 15,000 and 19,000 trucks are entering Victoria daily, the vast majority from NSW. A Victorian government spokesperson said there were 9800 valid permit holders.
Transport industry groups want less onerous COVID-19 tests for drivers, but health experts warn they are less accurate.
Credit:Andrew Quilty
The warning came as Victoria emerged from a 12-day lockdown at midnight on Tuesday, and South Australia’s lockdown also ended. But NSW recorded 172 locally acquired cases of coronavirus on Tuesday and Premier Gladys Berejiklian was set to extend her state’s strict confinement for another four weeks.