People from Victoria are prohibited from entering NSW, but exemptions are made for a number of purposes and professions, including cross-border residents in settlements such as Albury-Wodonga.

The online application for cross-border permits began on Tuesday night, but the website crashed only 45 minutes after it was launched when 44,000 people applied, according to Australian national broadcaster ABC.

There are 55 land crossings between Victoria and NSW, on the border which stretches more than 1,000 kilometers (621.3 miles). Albury-Wodonga is located at the busiest crossing of them all – and on Australia’s largest transport route, raising concerns about the potential economic damage in the region.

“Totally frustrated and chaotic”

Early on Wednesday morning, traffic stretched for miles at the border checkpoint on Lincoln Causeway, the main highway that connects Albury and Wodonga, when police officers inspect every car that is crossing.

It took several Wodonga residents – from the Victoria side of the border – 50 minutes to pass the checkpoint at 6 am to go to work in Albury, said Wodonga Mayor Anna Speedie, who called the situation “unacceptable.”

“Unfortunately today has indeed begun as we had hoped with frustration and chaos,” Speedie told reporters next to the checkpoint.

“At 7:30 in the morning, we had traffic turning into the middle of my city, right in the heart of the city,” he said.

Speedies said his government would continue to work with the NSW police to implement several more practical approaches.

“We have to do better, we really need to find a solution because this is absolutely unattainable for our community.”

Albury Mayor Kevin Mack said three people from Melbourne were found trying to drive across the state border into Albury since 2am Wednesday. They were returned by police, he said.

This week, Albury recorded two new cases of corona virus for the first time in weeks. A resident who returned from Melbourne was infected with the virus and transmitted it to family members, according to local health authorities.

Bikram Gujral, a truck driver who was queuing at the checkpoint, said he understood the strict boundaries that had been imposed.

“Obviously it is frustrating for anyone. But whatever the government does is in our interests, so I feel it is the right thing to do if it’s for our sake to be safe,” he said.

Separated by border

But for some people, closing borders might make them miss the last chance to see their loved ones.

April Smithers, 29, is being treated for terminal bone cancer at the Albury Wodonga Regional Cancer Center in Albury, on the NSW side of the border.

She and her husband Chris Carter live in Wodonga, on Victoria’s side.

“Our home is in Victoria. We cross into New South Wales almost every day to come to this hospital. With the closure of the border … I will stay here. Luckily the hospital gave me a bed last night,” Carter said.

But Carter’s parents, who had traveled from Canberra to Wodonga to see the couple, could not cross to the NSW side, he said.

“My parents came to help me and April through all this,” Carter said. “But now they are not residents, they don’t have their own medical treatment to go to New South Wales … They can’t see April until we find out how they got their permission.”

The reappearance of the virus refers to the difficulties faced by authorities around the world, as they try to reopen cities after protracted lockouts. Australia has been heralded as one of the most successful countries in the world in tackling and restraining the virus, closing its borders and limiting international travel early.

Residents in Australia’s second largest city will no longer be allowed to leave their homes except for shopping, caring, exercising, or working. Cafes and restaurants that were allowed to reopen last week will return for pick up and delivery only. Beauty and personal services will be closed, as well as cultural and entertainment venues.