The mayors of Albury and Wodonga are lobbying their respective state governments to make the Lincoln Causeway open to local traffic only during the border closure starting at midnight Tuesday.
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Cr Kevin Mack and Cr Anna Speedie said they had spoken directly to ministers from the NSW and Victorian governments about "practical solutions" to easing the disruption on residents from the first border closure in 101 years.
The traffic movement arrangements during the closure haven't been formally announced.
"My gut feel is we should have a checkpoint north of the city," Cr Mack said.
"Their professional advice is put it on the Lincoln Causeway.
"The Lincoln Causeway should be for local traffic, the freeway should be for all other traffic.
"This is a state issue and I understand that, but this is our community's issue.
"We are one of the most affected communities by this border closure.
"The setting has to be got right here."
Cr Speedie said she spoke to Victorian regional development minister Jaclyn Symes on Monday night about Lincoln Causeway being exclusively used by Albury-Wodonga residents.
"It does sound like a pretty logical solution, particularly if this goes on for a number of weeks," she said.
"I was on the phone late last night to minister Symes and we had many conversations about some practical solutions and she was definitely feeding them in.
"We've got people who aren't well and need care and are feeling pretty stressed at the moment.
"We want to see some practical solutions and we want to see some absolute clarity for our people."
NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller flagged the likelihood of Albury-Wodonga residents of being able to secure a one-off permit to move between the two cities during the closure period.
The two mayors are also pushing for the "Albury-Wodonga bubble" to be extended out to communities who have residents who travel to both centres on a daily basis for work and healthcare reasons.
They are hoping for a 100km radius to be introduced.
In the start-up phase before permits are processed, Cr Mack urged residents to make sure they carry their drivers' licence and letter from an employer to provide proof they were locals when pulled over at a checkpoint.
The two major checkpoints will be on the NSW side of the Union Bridge and the Hume Freeway in South Albury.
"Unfortunately a lot of people in Albury-Wodonga mightn't have their appropriate home address on their licence so a supplementary letter from their employer (would be a good idea),' Cr Mack said.
