Protesters have caused morning mayhem on a busy Sydney road by sitting and blocking three lanes of traffic.
Fireproof Australia climate change protesters sat across three lanes on the Grand Parade at Brighton Le Sands in Sydney’s south on Tuesday morning.
Five protesters wearing red shirts sat on the road, holding upxjmtzyw traffic during peak hour and causing cars to come to a standstill.
Police said the protesters were cleared around 9am.
A driver told 2GB’s Ben Fordham that he was stuck behind the protest and had not moved his car in more than 20 minutes.
It is believed they were objecting to the tough new protest laws that passed through NSW parliament on Friday.
“Defying newly passed laws Fireproof Australia supporters blockade a major road at Botany Bay in peak hour with their bodies and a call for a Large Arial Tanker fleet of waterbombing planes to fight fires,” the group said in a statement on social media.
The legislation says people can be fined up to $22,000 or jailed for a maximum of two years for illegal protests on public roads, rail lines, tunnels, bridges and industrial estates.
It is an amendment of the Roads Act 1993 and Crimes Act 1900 that impose the tough new penalties on illegal protesters who disrupt roads, bridges, tunnels, public transport and infrastructure facilities.
The new laws apply to ports in Newcastle, Port Kembla and Port Botany; however, the government says more facilities will be added over time.
The Bill passed the lower house on Friday afternoon with support from the opposition.
It comes after multiple protesters wreaked havoc across Port Botany in recent weeks, suspending themselves on cranes and poles to protest climate change.
Attorney-General Mark Speakman said the new laws targeted protesters who wished to “wreak economic chaos” across the state.
