Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Melbourne, Australia, in a largely peaceful fashion to rally against local lockdown restrictions—a stark contrast to the situation in Sydney, where more than 1,500 police officers descended upon the CBD and surrounding areas to quash what was believed to be a planned anti-lockdown protest. The New South Wales (NSW) police announced Saturday morning that public transport routes to downtown Sydney and ride shares would be blocked. Trains had to skip major train stations until 2 p.m. local time. Taxis and rideshare companies were threatened that they would face up to half a million dollars in fines if they take people to central Sydney between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. local time. Police officers held up traffic on major roads into the city to fend off any hints of a planned protest. In a statement on Twitter, the NSW police said that a …