China's Ministry of Transport forbids local governments to shut roads without authorization

China's Ministry of Transport on Sunday called on local governments to keep the highways in normal services, forbidding them to shut roads, service areas and toll booths without authorization.

If expressway service areas need to be closed due to the COVID-19, it should be reported to the provincial-level joint prevention and control management before implementation, the ministry said in a statement.

If the toll stations need to be closed due to the presence of infected cases or close contacts, the prevention and control management at or above the county-level shall report to the higher-level of management for approval before implementation, it added.

The public should be informed of the closure of service areas and toll stations on expressways in advance, the ministry said.