What Melbourne's 'ring of steel' checkpoints look like
As Victoria wakes to the first official day of lockdown, police have set up a new border dividing the city from the rest of the state.
Checkpoints have begun popping up across Melbourne as authorities begin to enforce the new stage three stay-at-home restrictions to help contain the state's coronavirus outbreak.
Hundreds of police have been patrolling the border of Greater Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire to stop people from entering regional Victoria.
Police check cars at checkpoint in Melbourne as authorities set up 'ring of steel' around CBD. 9News
Anyone who fails to provide a valid reason for leaving their area could be fined $1652. Police were seen issuing a fine to a driver earlier today.
About 1200 officers were on the streets with checkpoints in place in areas including Longwarry, Avalon and Donnybrook.
One of the checkpoints has been set up in Cheltenham in the city's south-east.
READ MORE: Operation Sentinel to create ring of steel around Melbourne
A Victoria Police checkpoint set up on the border of Sunbury and Gisborne on the Calder Freeway stopped motorists leaving metropolitan Melbourne on July 9, 2020. Paul Rovere
A Victoria Police checkpoint set up on the border of Sunbury and Gisborne on the Calder Freeway. Paul Rovere
Police were randomly pulling over cars and asking people who they are and why they are out.
"We will be pulling up cars actively, randomly selecting vehicles and checking what their business is," Sergeant Herb Lonsing said.
"We'll be checking their identity, where they come from."
Police will be conducting random checks and fining those without a valid reason for travelling. 9News
Sgt. Lonsing said traffic near Cheltenham was surprisingly "very heavy".
"It's out of the ordinary, this is totally different to when the first lockdown occurred," he said.
"This is just your normal everyday traffic, so people are still travelling to work by the look of it."
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