Authorities in Hong Kong have remove barricades in the pro-democracy protest site that has been choking the city for more than two months.

Slowly, methodically, and over the course of the day barricades were removed, plastic was sawed off, and sandbags were emptied.

Police stood guard over the workers, and onlookers recorded the scene from inside a building as tents in the iconic Admiralty District were picked up and moved off the street.

The removal was generally peaceful, with most demonstrators choosing to pack their belongings well ahead of the planned clearance.

Others though vowed to remain until physically picked up and removed by police, who hauled them off, one by one.

Despite the clearance, the occupy movement has been a social watershed on the fringes of greater China, with people standing up to Beijing to preserve democracy largely denied on the mainland.

At their peak the protests drew well over 100,000 with demonstrators speaking out against Beijing's refusal to allow freely elected candidates in the city's 2017 election.

As the sun began to set in Admiralty, and heavy machinery scooped up large portions of debris, the once village-like demonstration site was slowly returned to a recognizable thoroughfare.