Victoria to reopen border to most of Sydney

Victoria is set to downgrade the travel restrictions for people who have been in many parts of NSW.

From 6pm tonight, the Blue Mountains, Wollongong, and all but ten local government areas in Sydney will be downgraded from ‘red zones’ to ‘orange zones’.

The change means stranded Victorians will be able to come home.

Ten Sydney local government areas — Blacktown City, Burwood, Canada Bay City, Canterbury-Bankstown, Cumberland, Fairfield City, Inner West, Liverpool City, Parramatta City and Strathfield — will remain ‘red zones’.

Premier Daniel Andrews says active cases “are pretty much confined to those 10 local government areas”.

Anyone who has been in any of the red zones in the past 14 days will not be allowed to enter Victoria without an exemption.

Mr Andrews says it’s “unlikely” that all ten remaining red zones will be downgraded at the same time.

“They will be designated red for not a moment longer than they need to be,” he said.

Those coming to Victoria from an orange zone will have to apply for a travel permit. They must get tested for COVID-19 within 72 hours of arriving and self-isolate until they receive a negative result.

Sixteen NSW local government areas on the Victorian border will also move from orange zones to green zones from 6pm tonight, making movement across the border easier.