>if everyone took these measures seriously and genuinely made an effort to adhere to them we would be able to avoid this...
My city in England had seen numbers fall to negligible between March and September, when the government opened the schools and universities again. We had an influx of 100,000+ students from all over the country, with the completely predictable outcome that cases skyrocketed in the space of a week of their arrival.
We've now been put in the government's "Very High" risk tier which, on paper, means pretty much a new localised lockdown... except all the schools and universities are still open. And all the bars and pubs have to close... unless they give you a plate of chips with your pint. And you have to wear a mask in public buildings and on public transport... unless it would 'distress' you to do so.
Either don't do lockdown at all, or do it properly. These half-arsed "total lockdown... except... except.. except..." are just going to keep things dragging on indefinitely