Can I drive during coronavirus lockdown? UK car travel rules explained
PRIME Minister Boris Johnson announced on Monday night that all UK residents must stay at home to slow the spread of coronavirus. Public must not leave their properties unless it’s for an essential reason, and that includes those who own cars. ⚠️ Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates Can I drive my […]
PRIME Minister Boris Johnson announced on Monday night that all UK residents must stay at home to slow the spread of coronavirus.
Public must not leave their properties unless it’s for an essential reason, and that includes those who own cars.
Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates
Can I drive my car during lockdown?
There are no rules banning anybody from driving their car during this time.
The PM announced a very specific, limited number of reasons why people are allowed to leave their homes on Monday night.
As long as people are only driving for one of these four reasons, they’re allowed to be on the roads.
For what reasons am I allowed to leave my home?
Residents are only now allowed to leave their homes for one of four essential reasons:
- shopping for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible
- one form of exercise a day – (a run, walk, or cycle) – alone or with members of your household
- any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person
- travelling to and from work, but only where absolutely necessary and this cannot be done from home
Johnson said: “You should not be meeting friends. If your friends ask you to meet, you should say No. You should not be meeting family members who do not live in your home.
“You should not be going shopping except for essentials like food and medicine – and you should do this as little as you can. And use food delivery services where you can.
“If you don’t follow the rules the police will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings.”
Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates
Is Boris Johnson closing roads and motorways?
There are no plans to close roads or motorways just yet.
These new measures to keep people in their homes will last for three weeks and will hopefully lead to a drop in the number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the UK.
In three weeks time, Johnson will hope he can ease some of the measures rather than add further restrictions.
What about public transport?
Public transport also remains open to help key workers such as doctors and nurses but parts of this could be closed as well in future.
In London, commuters are struggling with underground services reduced – meaning the remaining carriages that are running are even busier than normal.
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Can I drive to perform exercise in other locations?
Many people, particularly in crowded cities, have been keen to drive elsewhere to perform their daily piece of exercise in more isolated locations.
The current government measures only state the reasons or which people are allowed to leave their homes and do not place any official restrictions on when and where people can perform exercise.
However, certain police forces have stated that you should not be driving to another location to perform exercise and North Yorkshire Police have announced that they will be manning checkpoints and stopping vehicles to ask where drivers are going.
Derbyshire Police were heavily criticised after posting a video on Twitter with drone footage from the Peak District, in which they criticised a couple out walking their dog.
How long will this lockdown last?
Johnson announced that these measures are in place for three weeks and they will be reviewed afterwards.
The length of the lockdown will depend on how the UK responds to the measures.
If coronavirus cases and deaths drop, the lockdown measures could be lifted when next reviewed.