Police close freeway exits in US capital amid drive-by protest

Washington, March 17

Police have closed "a number of freeway exits" in Washington, D.C., as a convoy of truckers were driving through the area in protest against Covid-19 measures in the US.

The police on Wednesday announced that the move was intended to "keep traffic moving safely", saying that "these rolling road closures are occurring in real-time as they are needed, and will be lifted as soon as they are no longer", reports Xinhua news agency,

In an earlier tweet, the police asked motorists to expect traffic delays, as well as demonstration activity on highways in and around the US capital.

A handful of vehicles believed to be part of the so-called People's Convoy reportedly made it into downtown Washington, D.C. on Wednesday afternoon.

The People's Convoy has camped outside a speedway in Hagerstown, a city in Washington County, the state of Maryland, since early March.

Over the past 10 days, truckers and other drivers have circled the Capital Beltway that surrounds Washington, D.C. multiple times to protest against the mask and vaccine mandates.

Their activities, a spin-off from the protests in Canada staged by truckers upset with vaccine requirements earlier this year, have drawn both support and criticism across the US.

US states and cities are lifting restrictions against Covid-19 but the protesters have also called for an end to the national emergency concerning the pandemic.