‘Ring of steel’ surrounds city as Melburnians wake to second lockdown

Melburnians have this morning woken to a second Stage 3 lockdown.

Police have set up roadblocks on seven major arterials in and out of metropolitan Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire, conducting random checks on motorists attempting to travel out of the lockdown zone.

3AW police reporter Pat Mitchell told 3AW Breakfast there are roadblocks at Donnybrook, Melton, Coldstream, Longwarry, Avalon, Gisbourne, Lang Lang.

He said the Lang Lang checkpoint wasn’t causing much disruption for motorists.

“It took me five or 10 minutes to get through,” he told Kate and Quarters, filling in for Ross and John.

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This is the checkpoint at Coldstream. The officers say they are using number plate recognition technology and only stopping motorists who are a long way from home. pic.twitter.com/HuTAjJJD3L

— Pat Mitchell (@patty_mitchell) July 8, 2020

But permanent roadblocks are not all police are doing to ensure lockdown residents don’t travel outside of the locked down zone without a permitted reason to do so.

That will be combined with random automated number plate recognition … together with harder roadblocks that we will do, but they’ll be moved,” Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent told Heidi Murphy on Tuesday evening.

Police will also conduct random checks in rural areas.

Mr Nugent warned those planning to flout the new rules that there will be a strong police presence on the lockdown border, and they will be caught.

“There’s a fair chance you’ll be pulled over at the roadblock that will be put in place there and checked and asked why you’re heading down the highway, and if it’s not in accordance with the requirements to be there, then you’ll be issued with a penalty notice,” he told Heidi Murphy, filling in for Tom Elliott.

Residents from within the lockdown area caught flouting the rules will face fines of up to $1652.

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Image: Asanka Ratnayake