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VICTORIA - The British Columbia government is looking at using periodic roadblocks to limit travel in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth speaks during a press conference at the legislature in Victoria, Monday, Oct. 28, 2019. The British Columbia government is providing a few more details about travel restrictions aimed at limiting movement around the province to slow the spread of COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito
VICTORIA - The British Columbia government is looking at using periodic roadblocks to limit travel in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19.
New COVID-19 measures for B C include roadblocks and restrictions on ferry travel timescolonist.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from timescolonist.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Periodic roadblocks but no individual stops planned for B.C. s COVID-19 travel rules
Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth speaks during a press conference at the legislature in Victoria, Monday, Oct. 28, 2019. The British Columbia government is providing a few more details about travel restrictions aimed at limiting movement around the province to slow the spread of COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito April 20, 2021 - 1:13 PM
VICTORIA - The British Columbia government is looking at using periodic roadblocks to limit travel in a bid to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Mike Farnworth, minister of public safety and the solicitor general, said the checks would be set up at locations like ferry terminals or along major highways leading out of Metro Vancouver.
British Columbia’s Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth shared additional details on the upcoming order restricting non-essential travel.
The sweeping new order was announced on Monday afternoon by Premier John Horgan. It includes cancelling ferries, travel bookings, camping reservations, and new border signage to discourage travel between provinces.
One of the most significant points of the travel ban is what Horgan described as random road “audits” on BC roads and highways something he compared to roadside counter-attack programs that target impaired drivers.
Farnworth has since addressed the order saying that he wants to make sure that racialized communities aren’t unjustly impacted and that they’ll “be taking steps to make sure [they] get this right.”
This extraordinary shift in BC’s position should tell you two things: First, the fight against the virus is not bending the province’s growth in cases as quickly as needed, with our hospitals approaching the highest “surge” capacity we’d planned for since the pandemic began, and public parties on Vancouver beaches last weekend showing some still aren’t taking it seriously.
And secondly, this is the last emergency brake the government can pull before it is forced into a more Ontario-style lockdown.
“We’re in a serious situation,” said Horgan. “We require serious measures if we’re going to get to the May long weekend and salvage our summer.”