As of one minute past midnight on Saturday morning (October 17), all London boroughs were placed under the Government's Tier 2 coronavirus restrictions.

This means that there is now a ban on mixing households indoors, including in pubs and restaurants.

But many boroughs in Greater London, including Richmond, border parts of Surrey which are still under Tier 1 restrictions – where meeting different households indoors is still allowed as long as you stick to the rule of six.

This means some roads are split in half – with residents and businesses on one side facing stricter measures than those just a few metres away.

To make things even more confusing, not all of Surrey is under the same tier, with the district of Elmbridge also joining London and most of Essex in tighter Tier 2 restrictions.

Plus, if you're from a Tier 2 area, you must still stick to Tier 2 rules even when you enter a Tier 1 area just up the road – because the rules you must follow are those from where you live, not where you go to.

The government's guidance for Tier 2 'High' areas says: "If you live in a high alert level area you also cannot meet indoors with people outside of the area, unless exceptions apply."

Exceptions include support bubbles, for work or education, childcare arrangements and providing emergency assistance.

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A line has to be drawn somewhere, and in most cases council borders follow natural ones, such as rivers and parks that separate one area for another.

But for an unlucky few, there isn't much of a distinction.

In the borough of Richmond, these roads which border Spelthorne have been split in two by coronavirus lockdown tiers.

Lower Sunbury Road and Lower Hampton Road

Staines Road East and Upper Sunbury Road