After nearly two months on lockdown, China says it plans to remove the travel ban from Wuhan where the coronavirus first begin.

Provincial authorities say they are easing the travel restrictions due to a significant reduction in new infections in Hubei and with new cases dropping to zero for five consecutive days. 

Since then, only one new case has surfaced, a doctor at the Hubei General Hospital.

The removal of the travel ban will begin in the Hubei province on Wednesday then the Wuhan area altogether on April 8th.

Wuhan is considered the epicenter for the virus with 67,801 cases and 3,160 fatalities and was first placed under state-imposed lockdown on January 23rd. All forms of transportation were shutdown in the area and the city’s perimeters were locked down as well.

Before making a decision on whether the travel restrictions should be removed,  China’s president visited the Wuhan area on March 10th.

While the spread of the virus has slowed down considerably in Wuhan, it has spread rapidly throughout the rest of the world.

380,000 have reportedly been infected with the virus with more than 16,500 deaths reported as a result of that according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Many countries and states have since issued their own lock down orders in an effort to stop the spread of the virus.