Just 45 minutes after launching, the webpage to apply for a permit to cross the NSW-Victoria border amid the coronavirus crisis in Melbourne stopped working, before returning just over an hour before the closure comes into effect.
Although functional when it launched shortly before 7:30pm on Tuesday night, by 8:15pm visitors were unable to apply for permission to enter NSW.
The red button which read "Apply online" had disappeared from the bottom of the page and an error which read "This transaction will be available soon" was placed at the top.
Before 11:00pm, the "Apply online" button reappeared and the text at the top of the site was updated to: "The permit application system is experiencing high levels of demand. You may experience delays in securing a permit.
"You can still demonstrate your eligibility to cross the border to police by carrying relevant documentation based on your category of exemption."
"It was temporarily up and running, with many of my friends in Echuca-Moama reporting they had gotten their permits," reader Kate told the ABC.
"It has since crashed."
Some social media users said in the first half-hour when it launched, the website crashed halfway through their application process.
A spokesperson for Service NSW said the system is working.
"The Service NSW permit application system is live and experiencing high levels of demand," the spokesperson said.
"We are aware that some people have experienced delays in securing a permit and we apologise for the delay."
The online applications were for people travelling into NSW from Victoria ahead of police and military blocking roads and bridges from 12:01am on Wednesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller had encouraged people to apply for the permits the evening before the border closed.
He said people who were not eligible for the permit and were caught trying to cross could face fines of up to $11,000 and up to six months in jail for breaching the public health order.
However, he conceded authorities would be flexible for the first 72 hours of the closure.
