WUHAN — Xiaogan, one of the cities that hit hard by the novel coronavirus outbreak in Central China's Hubei province, on March 21 resumed public transport after the city had been locked down for nearly two months.

Operation of buses, cabs, online car-hailing services and inter-county buses resumed from March 21, as the city had reported no new confirmed COVID-19 cases for 21 consecutive days.

Urban buses are currently available during three periods — 7-9 am, 11 am-1 pm, and 5-7 pm, according to the city headquarters for COVID-19 control.

Passengers holding a green health code, meaning no contact with any infected or suspected COVID-19 cases, can get on buses wearing masks and with only one person occupying the side-by-side seats while riding.

Cab-riders are also ordered to wear masks, with mobile payment encouraged instead of cash to avoid cross-infection.

As of March 20, the number of total confirmed COVID-19 cases was 3,518 in Xiaogan.