Australia reopened travel between New South Wales state and the former virus hotspot of Victoria on Monday, after four months of closed interstate borders.
“From 12.01am Monday 23 November, the NSW-Victoria border is open. Thank you to the residents of our border communities for your patience and understanding during this time,” NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian tweeted on Sunday.
Flights between Sydney and Melbourne, once the busiest flight route in the country and second busiest in the world, also resumed on Monday. Qantas and Jetstar will operate 17 flights between Sydney and Melbourne on Monday alone according to Qantas.
Why the border shut: The border between NSW and Victoria was closed on July 8, when Victoria saw a large spike in coronavirus cases. The country's largest outbreak so far peaked in July and August, and cases have slowly fallen back to single and double digits per day.
Both New South Wales and Victoria recorded no new locally transmitted coronavirus cases on Sunday.
The reopening of the border comes after Victoria further relaxed restrictions, including allowing the number of people attending outdoor gatherings in public places to 50 people. Cinemas, galleries and museums will be allowed to host up to 150 people indoors.