Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations (DSU) has rejected a request sent by the National Union of Road Transporters of Romania (UNTRR) calling for truck drivers to be exempt from quarantine measures.
In the middle of this month, the UNTRR sent a letter to the Prime Minister of Romania, Florin Cîțu, and to the Head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Dr. Raed Arafat, requesting that professional drivers be exempt from the rules that require people travelling from red or yellow zones to quarantine.
In its reply, the DSU maintained that the 14-day quarantine would apply to all persons entering the country from red or yellow zones – including drivers.
There are, however, some exceptions.
Firstly, persons who remain on Romanian territory for less than 72 hours are exempt from quarantine – provided that they present a negative SARS-CoV test performed at most 72 hours before entering the country.
Fully vaccinated persons are also exempt, as long as their last shot was completed at least ten days before entering Romania.
An up-to-date list of risk areas can be accessed here. At the time of publication, the UK is the only European nation classified as a red zone. However, Portugal, Spain, Andorra and Georgia are all considered to be yellow zones.
The UNTRR has strongly opposed the government’s refusal to make lorry drivers exempt. It argues the decision could disrupt supply chains as well as harm the country’s road transport businesses.
Photo credit: Politia de Frontiera