I can’t figure out the Scottish Central belt travel rule

[TheLastStarfighter]

I can’t figure out the Scottish Central belt travel rule.

We live outside the Central Belt. I want to go to IKEA at the edge of Edinburgh, and to North Berwick for a walk on the beach with a friend.

Both are in the Central Belt according to the health board definitions (although no one would ever normally associate North Berwick with the central belt).

I think the new rules say that I can travel in, but someone who lives there should “think carefully” about travelling out?

Guidance is different in different places, and also seems slightly different to what NS said when announcing it.

Even as a rule-follower I am considering saying “stuff-it” and just going because I can’t see where I would be increasing anyone’s risk.

Presumably the risk you'd increase is that of the people in the safer area you live in.
Are these the only two things you plan to do in the next fortnight, travel wise? If so I would crack on. If it's daily trips for non essential reasons into the central belt I would say that would be unwise and a bit selfish.

There are no rules about travelling in and out of those areas. Crack on!

The advice/request is not to travel outside your own health board area unless you need to.
Yes it's vague on the 'need', but I guess it's trying to minimise movement and transmission a bit without being massively restrictive.

www.eastlothiancourier.com/news/18779529.scotlands-new-lockdown-rules-mean-travelling-staycations/
She did say that you shouldn’t travel to one of the high risk health board areas unless you have to

Official rules and guidelines from www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-additional-measures-october-2020/

Travel

"we want people to be safe. We are not advising that people who have already booked holiday accommodation in October need to cancel. More generally, please think about whether you need to travel, especially if you live in or would be travelling to, or through, the central belt. The Scottish Government is asking people within the central belt areas (see end note for definition) to think carefully about whether they need to travel outside their local health board area and, where that is necessary, to plan to do so safely"

It doesn't say people in the central belt can't travel outside their health board area, just that they should think carefully about the need to do so and plan to do it safely if they do.

I have a holiday booked which is outside of the central belt but we will need to drive through it to get there. Unless Monday's announcement in England means I'm not allowed to stay anywhere overnight, I'm still planning to go. We will stay overnight at a hotel outside of the 5 Health board areas and then travel through the central belt to our destination without getting out of the car.

It's advisory so nothing stopping you going.

I've given up trying to understand any of the rules set by the Scottish Government.

Well, then I guess on balance I’ll go see my friend for a walk but hold off on going to IKEA.

Cases per head in North Berwick are even less than they are here anyway, even if they have been classed as central belt.

It’s such a weird balancing act though. I don’t for a moment think I am likely to catch Covid in IKEA and spread it around Scotland. I could order a home delivery, which would come from the same store, and therefor carry statistically the same risk. And my Sainsbury’s delivery comes from the exact same area. So there are people driving in and out if that area whether I go or not.

I get that it’s about the statistical probability of thousands of people travelling in and out of the area, but it is just weird applying it to individual mundane tasks.

I could order a home delivery, which would come from the same store, and therefor carry statistically the same risk

The risk would not statistically be the same. To physically go to the store you are standing amongst people in the queue, browsing amongst people, possibly using the toilets, queuing to pay amongst people, possibly eating in the cafe, maybe bumping into someone you know and stopping for a chat. Not all those people you come into contact will necessarily be wearing a face covering, they may not be bothered about social distancing, and some may be positive for covid-19 without realising.

Given up trying to understand Scot Govs rules on anything tbh

@raviolidreaming No, what I want can be picked up directly from the warehouse, which is at a separate site to the store itself. If I did go into the store it would be at a quiet time, I wouldn’t be using the toilets, and I haven’t been in a cafe in 6 months. And other people may not be bothered about distancing, but as an ex shielded I most certainly am.

I get your point, but it serves to highlight how different it is for different circumstances.

Crack on then 🤷‍♀️

Personally I'd go. I'm in Edinburgh and wasn't actually aware we had travel restrictions so have inadvertently broken them as spending the weekend in the Borders!

How can you get the Ikea warehouse stuff without going into Ikea to pay? Do you mean you will pay online?

@Slightlybrwnbanana They do click and collect now. You used to just be able to phone customer services and pay over the phone if what you wanted was warehouse-only (eg kitchens etc. where if you go in store they just print your order to pay at the till and then take the printout to the collection point).

Ahh. (It's a whole new world).
The Ikea queue was the only seriously long one I saw in lockdown (well once the shops began reopening)

I did see a B&Q queue right round the car park at Hermiston Gait. It made me laugh slightly because most people were coming out of the store empty-handed but happy. I think people just wanted a bit of retail therapy 😁