New Zealand’s third week in lockdown was it's most deadly, but as new case numbers continue to fall, NZ remains optimistic that Level 4 restrictions may be lifted on schedule.
After an article highlighting Auckland runners ignoring safe distancing recommendations in New Zealand's lockdown period, the Herald has been inundated with reports of joggers "being dicks", "deliberately coughing" and "laughing" at requests to respect the two-metre rule.
But it turns out runners aren't the only group raising concerns.
Cyclists and dog owners have also been called out by worried residents who say their "once peaceful walk has become an obstacle course of avoiding runners, cyclists and other walkers who just don't seem to be understanding the social-distancing concept".
A reader from Orewa said cyclists on the area's estuary walkway "speed past from behind" while runners "huffing and puffing" make no attempt to share the paths, forcing walkers to move way over onto the grass. They say the walkway has "turned into a speed track for many cyclists and joggers".
It's gotten so bad in the UK that "for the first time in history there are public calls to ban running, or restrict it to certain hours". Photo / Getty Images
Another concerned reader said their elderly mother had been laughed at on two occasions and told to "chill out" by a woman and her daughter "when she's asked very nicely if people could obey the 2m rule when passing or make room for her to pass safely".
They said their parents now find it "too stressful" to get out for their daily walk in Cornwall Park some days - something they've enjoyed doing for the past five years.
Meanwhile, a Ponsonby local says he's started using the edge of the road for his morning walks because "the footpath is just too dangerous" so he's decided he'd "rather risk the traffic ..."
He says the inner city suburb's streets are full of "runners/joggers/T-Rex impersonators more often than not running together two abreast."
A disgruntled Whangaparaoa resident said while walkers at Gulf Harbour and Army Bay were "very considerate, making sure each are keeping their distance, even crossing the road to make it easier for each other", that's not the case with local joggers.
"The runners, sweating and puffing, don't veer off course at all which is a problem when they run right up behind you and run past with no space. Quite simply they consider their activity far too important to keep their distance from others."
It's fair to say, under alert level 4, getting out for some fresh air has never been more appealing. As such, many of our streets have never been busier. But it seems packed footpaths and common courtesy are mutually exclusive.
"I've had both male and female runners being dicks," a reader shared. "One lady ran right close to a pregnant woman across the road from me who got quite flustered. Cyclists are also not great at giving people space."
Then, there are the dog owners. The Herald shared an image of dogs at Westmere's Cox's Bay Reserve revealing canines running amok and owners engaging in too-close-for-Covid chit chat in the early days of lockdown.
Cox's Bay Reserve is a busy spot during lockdown. Photo / Supplied
On the North Shore, a Milford resident in their 70s said walking in their neighbourhood had become a case of doing so "at your own risk". They said while runners "just run through you", the local beach had "four dogs at least" running about off lead yesterday afternoon.
A report from Whangaparaoa claims Auckland Council animal patrol officers had been out advising owners to put their dogs on a leash.
Overseas, the issue has escalated to the point that full bans have been implemented.
In an article for the Telegraph, Paul Tonkinson said "for the first time in history there are public calls to ban running, or restrict it to certain hours".
After France recorded its highest daily death toll to date, Paris banned daytime jogging after several groups were seen out running together.
NZ alert level 4 rules
In case you're still unsure, the Government's recent health notice sets out the guidelines for safe distancing and "essential personal movement" as:
• Everyone in New Zealand is to be isolated or quarantined at their current place of residence except as permitted for essential personal movement;
• Exercise is to be done in an outdoor place that can be readily accessed from home and two-metre physical distancing must be maintained;
• Recreation and exercise does not involve swimming, water-based activities (for example, surfing or boating), hunting, tramping, or other activities of a kind that expose participants to danger or may require search and rescue services;
• A child can leave the residence of one joint care-giver to visit or stay at the residence of another joint care-giver (and visit or stay at that residence) if there is a shared bubble arrangement;
• A person can leave their residence to visit or stay at another residence (and visit or stay at that residence) under a shared bubble arrangement if:
• One person lives alone in one, or both, of those residences; or
• Everyone in one of those residences is a vulnerable person.
