Family parks up in servo just south of Queensland border to miss the rush

A Queensland family in New South Wales for six months due to Covid-19 border closures will today finally return home.

Just nine kilometres from the border, Julie Aubrey and her family have parked up in a servo, patiently waiting for that 1am deadline.

Ms Aubrey headed from her home in North Brisbane to Victoria on June 5 to care for her mother-in-law who was sick with cancer.

Sadly, her mother-in-law passed away in October, but Ms Aubrey wasn’t able to return home due to the hard border closures.

Six months later, and she is now as close as she can get to her kids as she waits just nine kilometres away from her home state.

“We’ll stay here until we can apply for the border pass and then we’ll head north and join the queue,” she said.

“I just hope the border pass site doesn’t take too long or crash.”

Julie Aubrey and her family waiting to cross the border. Picture: Supplied.

While there are only a handful of other caravans doing the same thing and parking up in the nearby servo, Ms Aubrey said the situation gets even more intense the closer you get.

“People are saying that the car park just before the border is choc-a-block full, you can’t fit another car in there.”

Other travellers have mentioned that the trend is continuing across the border with people poised to make a move.

One person said there were “hundreds” of caravans and campervans lining the roads while others said they were “anticipating a carpark almost to Byron”.

Thankfully, Ms Aubrey has her two-year-old granddaughter, Mckenna, by her side who she just recently reunited with.

“I haven’t seen her for six months and my son passed her over the border to me on Wednesday night. She’s been with us and she’s had her Covid test to come home with us,” she said.

Getting back is the only thing on her mind with Ms Aubrey more than prepared to sit in line before heading off on her almost two hour journey home to Brisbane.

“I haven’t seen my kids for six months, so that’s been tough. I just can’t wait to see them.”

Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll has asked people not to queue at the border before 1am.

She said the border pass system would go live at various stages.

“Can I ask people that you cannot come to the border until 1am under the new system, because you’re making a declaration, a legal declaration from 1am, so if you turn up beforehand it is under the old direction and you will be treated legally under that old direction, so pretty well everything happens from 1am,” she said.

“This is very important ... there is a technical change, but also a legal change. As of 8.30 tonight there will be a X pass and that’s the border zone residents as of 10pm an international pass and as of midnight a G pass, the one that comes from the hotspots I have just spoken about,” she said.

“Can I ask people to be patient and to plan ahead, to travel outside of those peak hours if we can and to ensure that you do have your correct pass. If you can’t print it that’s fine, make sure it’s on your phone when you’re going through.”

“I ask that you be truthful on your passes, many many instances we have had where people have been reported, have not been truthful... as a result there are obviously heavy fines f you aren’t.”

Originally published as Family parks up in servo just south of Queensland border to miss the rush