Warnings issued against blocking truckers

Warnings have been issued recently to some checkpoints at transportation hubs for obstructing truckers passing the areas for epidemic control, the Ministry of Transport said.

Some freeway checkpoints at the provinces of Hebei, Anhui and Shaanxi carried out inappropriate regulations to hinder freight transportation, such as requiring additional nucleic acid tests for truckers and sending back all truckers from areas with COVID-19 cases.

The warnings have been issued by the office overseeing unimpeded logistics under the State Council, China's Cabinet.

In March, when the latest outbreak of COVID-19 emerged across China, road transportation was initially clogged up due to stringent measures to contain the novel coronavirus. Strict COVID-19 curbs also prompted road closures and hurt trucking services in many regions across the country.

The State Council established a leading office to ensure unimpeded logistics on April 18 to solve transport clogging problems.

Since then, problems such as closed tolls and service areas on freeways and blocked roads hindering supply transport have been addressed gradually.

A hotline has also been set up to answer truckers' questions and receive comments.