Overview
The Greater Sydney, Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour regions have been under lockdown for almost five weeks, and folks in these areas have only been able to exercise within ten kilometres from home — or in their Local Government Areas — for nearly three weeks now. From midnight tonight, that distance rule will apply to going shopping, too. So, when you're going to buy essentials, your choice of stores will be limited.
Just like working out, you won't be permitted to shop wherever you like. Instead, from midnight tonight, Wednesday, July 28, you'll need to remain within ten kilometres of your house or within your LGA. If you're currently scrambling to find quick ways to map out your ten-kilometre zone, that's understandable.
There are a few easy ways to check out your household's government-approved travel radius now that you have less room to play with. But none have proved quite as popular as KM From Home — a website that originally launched in Ireland back in March, when that country introduced its own travel restrictions, and was jumped on by Melburnians back in August 2020 when they were put under similar restrictions.
The online map is free and easy to use — simply centre it to your address, select a ten-kilometre radius and you'll see a big red or blue bubble encompassing the zone you're free to travel in under the New South Wales Government's new rules.
You'll find other radius apps out there as well, including the likes of Map Developers. Alternatively, if you've got a Garmin watch, you can download this range warning and it'll alert you when you're closing in on a certain distance from your run's starting point.
Want to check a specific shop or park to see if it falls in your ten-kilometre zone? There's a function on the Google Maps app that allows you to measure a distance as the crow flies. On desktop, simply right click on a location on the map, select 'measure distance' and then click anywhere else on the map and it'll show you exactly how far the address is from your starting point.
Under the current rules, you can only exercise in groups of two, or with your household members — and only one person from your household can leave home once a day to collect essential supplies. All exercising and shopping must be done within ten kilometres of your home, of course.
Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, the Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour will remain in lockdown until at least 12.01am on Saturday, August 28. For more information about the status of COVID-19 in NSW, head to the NSW Health website.
Images: Km From Home.