Tougher border restrictions are now in place for people wanting to enter NSW from Victoria, including a border zone set up along the Murray River as COVID-19 cases rise across the northern state.
The new restrictions began at midnight, with cross-border travel permitted solely for work, education, medical care, supplies or health services.
Among the changed requirements, staff or students at boarding schools or universities must self-isolate for two weeks and obtain a negative virus swab while seasonal workers from Victoria are barred entry.
Transport Workers Union NSW secretary Richard Olsen said the cancellation of previous travel permits and the need to reapply had caused “confusion, anxiety and angst” in the transport industry on July 21.
“Drivers are already under pressure, with the squeeze on the transport industry as a critical service during this pandemic,” Olsen said in a statement.
NSW recorded 13 new COVID-19 cases from almost 16,000 tests in the 24 hours to 8pm on Monday, including 10 people associated with an outbreak at the Thai Rock Restaurant in Stockland Mall at Wetherill Park.
Berejiklian said social distancing measures and avoiding non-essential travel remained the best method to halt the spread of COVID-19.
