Three COVID infringement notices issued at Blackall during police visit

Assistant police commissioner Mike Condon, whose area has 48 border crossings stretching west to Cameron's Corner, nine of which are manned 24 hours a day, visited a number of those last week, along with pressure points such as saleyards and eatery outlets.

He spoke with mayors, who he described as a critical part of the fight against the spread of coronavirus in remote parts of the state, saying maintaining the economy was absolutely critical in terms of recovery and so he wanted to get an understanding of how industries were managing the shutdown.

"If there are any impediments that we should be aware of it's a good opportunity to talk to people here and see what we can do," he said.

"If necessary, (we can) take it back to the Chief Health Officer to maybe look at directions being reconsidered so we can keep the flow of industry going that will keep the economy going as best we can as we move into recovery."

He said the trucking industry had been fantastic, saying they understood the imperativeness of lockdown directives.

"We had to find a balance between enabling (truck drivers) to travel the distances and rest," he said.

"We talked right across all the operators to permit them to shower and have a decent meal.

"Some of the designs of the service stations are very old so you might find some where you've got to walk through the dining room to get to the toilets.

"We've had to do a bit of education there but in the main I think the operators and businesses are working with us because they don't want this dreaded virus in their communities."

It wasn't the case for three members of the public who were issued with $1300 infringement notices at Blackall during the visit, the town's first.

Mr Condon said they'd been warned about social distancing and their non-compliance.

"They totally disregarded the warning and as a result there were three tickets," he said.

Infringement notices have also been handed out in Longreach and Winton since the new rules have been in place.

"We accept that people may not understand at the level they should," Mr Condon said.

"We communicate that process and then if you are blatantly disregarding you'll get a ticket and that's what happened.

"You are compromising the safety of everyone in town."

The district's biggest border point is at Goondiwindi where over 20,000 heavy vehicles have been through since March 26.

Read more: Goondiwindi border crossings to be increased

Stopping a truck for long could result in a backlog of vehicles back into NSW and Mr Condon said it had been a matter of educating both the industry about permits, and the police manning the points.

He commented on the two instances in mid-April where travellers followed Google instructions that told them the Mitchell Highway was closed at the NSW border at Barringun, resulting in them becoming bogged on alternate routes.

"It was an interesting issue there," he said.

"They're not actually closed, they're either manned at the checkpoints or there's alternate routes around.

"They've gone the alternate routes and got themselves lost and bogged.

"We're constantly sending the message out there to check with your local police, check with the signage and make sure you have an essential reason for travelling in the first place."

Mr Condon said Queensland's borders would not be opened up until authorities were "absolutely satisfied that the rest of the country is at least in as much control as we are".