An aerial photo of the High-tech Avenue before the upgrade. [Photo/WeChat account of Optics Valley of China]

East Lake High-tech Development Zone -- also known as Optics Valley of China and located in Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei province -- at 8 pm on July 31 began closing down its main thoroughfare, High-tech Avenue, according to zone officials.

They said the roadway, the main avenue of the zone, would be upgraded and was scheduled to reopened to traffic during the National Day holiday in October.

According to the project manager, the avenue is 10.7 kilometers long. The main road of the avenue is being widened and when completed will be a two-way thoroughfare with a total of eight lanes and a two-way side road is being designed with six driveways. The upgrade includes construction of roadway, drainage, pipeline relocation and establishment of green belts.

The project manager added that the avenue is an important arterial road of the zone. It is also the main channel connecting the zone with Wuhan central city and Ezhou, which helps to improve the flow of regional traffic.

Officials said the avenue will be reopened to traffic during this year's National Day holiday and follow-up greening and other ancillary installations will be completed by the end of the year.

They added that on completion, the avenue will provide great convenience for surrounding residents, companies and institutions.