England has been placed on a three-tier lockdown rule so as to reduce the household-to-household spread of the Coronavirus disease. The lockdown rule applies differently to local areas according to the rate of the spread of the Coronavirus disease. This will in some ways affect travelling within these areas.
Tier 1 areas:
These are areas that have a low rate of infection in England. No socialising should exceed 6 people whether indoors or outdoors. Pubs and restaurants will make sure customers take their food and drink seated. Schools can continue to operate. People at a wedding should not exceed 15 while those at a funeral should not exceed 30. People in worship places should not mingle in a group more than 6.
There is no restriction on travel for tier 1 areas.
Tier 2 areas:
These are areas with high rates of infection. The aim is to reduce transmission from one household to another. People are not allowed to socialise with others outside their household. No outdoors socialising should exceed 6 people – in a garden, at a park or a beach. Pubs and restaurants will make sure customers take their food and drink seated. Schools can continue to operate. People at a wedding should not exceed 15 while those at a funeral should not exceed 30. People in worship places should not mingle in a group more than 6. In this category are – northwest and northeast England, parts of the Midlands, London and most of Essex.
And for those who love to go on short journeys in these areas, the government has advised that “People should aim to reduce the number of journeys they make where possible. If they need to travel, they should walk or cycle where possible, or to plan ahead and avoid busy times and routes on public transport.” People can travel to amenities that are open, for work or for educational purpose.
Tier 3 areas:
These are areas with a very high rate of infection. The aim is to reduce social mixing indoors and outdoors. People are not allowed to socialise with those they do not live with or those they have not formed a support bubble with (support bubble is when someone from a household teams up with another household and is now considered part of that household). No socialising should exceed 6 people outdoors – in a garden, at a park or a beach. Schools can continue to operate. People at a wedding should not exceed 15 while those at a funeral should not exceed 30. People in worship places should not mingle in a group more than 6. In this category are – Liverpool City Region and Lancashire.
People are advised to avoid travelling outside a very high alert level area or entering a very high alert level area. The exceptions to such travels are travels for work, education or youth services, to meet caring responsibilities or if travelling through as part of a longer journey.
The Welsh government has placed a ban on travels from high and very high risk areas. People from high and very high risk areas in England, the central belt of Scotland (including Edinburgh and Glasgow) and anywhere in Northern Ireland will not be able to visit Wales. Those from high risk and very high risk areas in Wales are not permitted to travel out for a holiday.
