South Coast Journeys COVID-19 Safe Plan 2021

South Coast Journeys COVID-19 Safe Plan 2021

Given the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, South Coast Journeys has taken and will continue to take necessary precautions to keep our workplace, drivers, tour customers and the wider community as safe as reasonably practical.

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and Government announcements in relation to business operations, the following Plan covers the obligations as an Operator and a tour customer and the steps being taken around managing and mitigating risk as per current government guidelines.

1. IMMEDIATE QUARANTINE REQUIREMENTS (ALL PERSONS)

All persons on the bus (drivers and tour customers) who:

• Is confirmed COVID-19 positive and not yet cleared by NSW Health;
• Have a Stay at Home Order or been told to quarantine awaiting COVID-19 testing results.
• Have been overseas or in a Australian Government or State of Australia declared Covid-19 hotspot in the last 14 days?
• Have been in close contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19.

Must not attend the tour or get on the bus.  They should inform the Driver and South Coast Journeys that they are unable to attend and why. Where such persons attend, they must leave the bus immediately, and seek advice regarding isolation.  It is recommended that all such persons urgently consult a medical professional.

For Drivers, return to bus depot and cease bus driving duties; drivers will only be permitted to return to work once the quarantine period has passed, and upon receipt of a satisfactory medical clearance from a medical professional / NSW Health.

2. IMMEDIATE DISCLOSURE IF FEELING UNWELL (ALL PERSONS)

Anyone (driver or customer) who feels unwell or has a fever, cough, sore throat, headache, runny nose, tiredness and/or shortness of breath must not attend the tour or get on the bus.

If anyone has any of these symptoms whilst on a tour, they must notify a South Coast Journeys representative and leave the tour immediately and urgently consult with a medical professional.

3. WORK ATTENDANCE (DRIVERS)

You are not required to attend for work if, for personal risk/safety reasons, you do not wish to.  In such cases, you must inform South Coast Journeys ahead of time to allow them to make alternate arrangements.

4. HYGIENE REQUIREMENTS AND USE OF PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (ALL PERSONS)

All persons on a bus tour must, at all times, follow strict hygiene requirements.  This includes:

• Sanitize hands and use QR code to sign in on arrival at each venue. Hand sanitizer is to be kept available on all buses used when boarding the bus.
• Customers and Drivers are encouraged to wear face masks. However, are NOT mandatory.
• Maintaining ‘social distancing’ at the recommended 1.5m (or 4m sq) separation
• Cough into a tissue, or the crook of your arm when coughing or sneezing and wash your hands immediately afterwards
• Avoid touching the face, eyes, nose and mouth and where having done so, immediately wash your hands
• Correctly use, wear and safely dispose of any Personal Protective Equipment that is in use

5. CONSEQUENCES FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY (ALL PERSONS)

Failure to follow this Plan may result in disciplinary action for Drivers or immediate removal from a Tour for customers.

6. TOUR VENUES

South Coast Journeys is in regular contact with our tour venues. This includes wineries, breweries and restaurants. The tour venues have COVID-19 Safety Plans in place to identify and mitigate risk. All South Coast Journeys Drivers and Tour Customers must adhere to the directions given by staff at venues we visit as a condition of participating in the Tour. These measures, which include hygiene, social distancing and health questions are for the safety of their visitors, staff and the community in general. Tour Customers may contact any venue they are visiting on their tour to obtain their Safety Plan.

7. SEATING AND TRAVEL ON VEHICLES

Where possible the optimal solution is presented in Figure 1, to meet social distancing rules, of 1.5m in an enclosed space. However, the hirer may agree to have extra passengers. Key points:

• Drivers and Tour Customers are encouraged to download the Government COVID-Safe App and Service NSW App, for contact tracing purposes. In addition, South Coast Journeys will have group organisers contact details.
• All customers are to sign in on South Coast Journeys Service NSW QR code for contact tracing purposes, at the start of the tour. Anyone without the Service NSW App is to be signed in as a dependent of someone with the app.
• No passenger is to travel in the front passenger seat or in the seats directly behind the driver, if possible.
• If the NSW Government has enforce a Public Health Order stating OR similar -Singing by audiences at indoor shows or by congregants at indoor places of worship is not allowed. Customers ARE NOT TO SING ON THE BUS.
• Tour Customers must return to the same seat throughout a tour and ARE NOT TO CHANGE SEATS WITH ANYONE ELSE DURING A TOUR.
• STRICTLY NO EATING OR DRINKING ON THE BUS.

In addition to Fatigue Management Guidelines additional measures have been implemented in relation to travelling on a bus:

• Open windows – DO NOT use recycled air conditioning
• If vehicle air-conditioned is used – vehicle needs to be aired out and disinfected during stops.
• If safe to do so, DO NOT use handrails on entry exit.
• Only the driver is to open and close any manual doors and will disinfect high-touch surfaces during stops.
• Hand sanitising must be performed upon entry and exit of the bus and is available on the vehicle.

8. CLEANING OF VEHICLES

South Coast Journeys has a stringent cleaning regime before, during and after each Tour.

The use of Hospital grade antibacterial wipes or other appropriate cleaning products (not bleach as that will degrade/stain/damage plastics and paint) will be used before and after vehicle use (door handles, steering wheel, gear shifter and indicator stalks/window switches), and easy to access bin to dispose of wipes/gloves.

Note dwell times: each manufacturer of hospital grade disinfectants/wipes will have different dwell times of the solution to sit on the surface for it to ‘clean’ the area before they are wiped off to meet their claims of killing 99.9% of bacteria.  Hospital grade cleaner such as ViraClean is the preferred cleaning agent, when available / in stock, which is ph neutral, does not contain chlorine or oxidising biocides nor corrosive to metals.

The cleaning of the external surfaces will be conducted before every tour in accordance with South Coast Journeys existing procedures.

9. UPDATES

While we will remain vigilant, rest assured South Coast Journeys are taking all reasonably practical steps to mitigate risk and operate our tours to the highest of standards.

The safety of our Drivers, Tour Customers, and our community is always our number one priority. Any persons wishing to discuss concerns about their upcoming or recent Tour please do not hesitate to contact Hamish Tucker, South Coast Journeys Director and Manager on 0421 497 604 or feel free to email info@southcoastjourneys.com.au