New York City will have COVID-19 checkpoints at key bridges and crossings, and will strictly enforce the travel quarantine ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, Sheriff Joseph Fucito announced the measures Tuesday alongside Bill de Blasio, The Hill reports.
Authorities are to conduct spot checks when out-of-state buses drop passengers off. Test and tracing teams will be on the ground throughout the city to direct individuals to testing sites and provide education on quarantine to out-of-town guests, Fucito said.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced changes last month saying travelers from all non-neighbouring states are required to have a negative test before arriving and then test again four days. If that shows a negative, they can stop quarantining the mandatory 14 days.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) has said violations of the self-quarantine will be enforced, and may carry fines of $1,000 to $2,000.
The city will also enforce the completion of traveler forms for out-of-town guests at airports, Penn Station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal. There will be self-test site teams on site.
The state, once the center of the outbreak in the spring, reported a seven-day average of 1,476 new cases on Tuesday.