According to the health department, there was another positive reading returned at the Ballarat South water treatment plant on Wednesday this week.

It was the second positive result in two weeks, with a previous COVID detection on August 30.

There had been five other tests in between that returned negative results.

There was still not been a detection at the Ballarat North treatment plant.

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The suburbs that feed into the Ballarat South plant include: Ballarat, Ballarat East, Brown Hill, Canadian, Golden Point, Mt Clear, Buninyong, Sebastopol, Lucas, Alfredton, Lake Wendouree, Redan, Delacombe, Bonshaw and Enfield.

The detection of the virus in the wastewater does not necessarily mean the virus is circulating in Ballarat.

However, there were multiple detections in Shepparton before the current outbreak was confirmed.

More information about wastewater testing can be found here.

You can see all the testing sites here.

Meanwhile, more than a million regional Victorians are waking to more freedoms as lockdown lifts for all areas outside Melbourne except Shepparton, but a number of restrictions remain.

People in the regions can now travel as far as they want from their homes after the stay-at-home order and five-kilometre travel limit ended at midnight on Thursday.

However, a number of strict rules remain.

Visitors are still not allowed in homes and hospitality can only open for a maximum of 10 people indoors and 20 outdoors.

See the full list of rule changes and restrictions here.

It comes after a regional train driver tested positive for COVID-19 since working with a trainee and visiting both the Traralgon and Southern Cross depots.

The V/Line driver, who caught the virus from his partner, worked all of last weekend, Monday and Tuesday but was asymptomatic at the time.

There has not been any impact to train services and both Southern Cross and Traralgon stations are being deep cleaned.

"We are closely monitoring staff availability and we are working hard to minimise any impact to services," a V/Line spokesman said.

While businesses can now reopen in regional Victoria, a number of strict rules applying to the hospitality industry make it unviable for many venues to open.

Retail businesses have been given a density limit of one person per four square metres, but hospitality venues are allowed a maximum of 10 people seated inside and 20 outside.

Schools can reopen from Friday for years prep to two and year 12, but all other students must continue their studies remotely.

See where all the active cases are here.

Also coming into effect on Friday is a relief for some Victorians who have been stuck living in a NSW local government border area.

Victorians who have resided in those areas for at least 14 days, from Wednesday 25 August to Wednesday 8 September, will be able to apply for a new permit exemption category to come home.

Meanwhile, Premier Daniel Andrews says detailed modelling from the Burnett Institute will be released in the next week forecasting the Victorian outbreak's peak and how the healthcare system will respond.

He said there is an "enormous amount of work" being done to prepare the state's hospitals for a surge in cases.

Melbourne and Shepparton remain under lockdown, after the state recorded more than 300 cases on Thursday with 195 of those located in Melbourne's north.

The outbreak in the northern suburbs has led to calls from GPs, pharmacists and community leaders for a Pfizer vaccine blitz in the area, at more culturally appropriate sites.

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