Tidal lane robots go on duty in Kunming

Two reversible/tidal lanes were put to service at the Jiaosanqiao intersection in Kunming city, Yunnan province on July 5. The tidal-lane robots now help relieve traffic congestion in downtown during the rush hours.

Jiaosanqiao was chosen for tidal lanes because it connects two main roads: Renming Road and Beijing Road.

"During the morning rush hour, traffic here flows predominantly into downtown, and the "tidal lane" is a straight lane of Beijing Road from north to south for vehicles," said a traffic police officer. "Then, the lane changed into one with a left turning."

In the evening, the traffic flow direction is the opposite, and the tidal phenomenon of traffic flow in the direction of Beijing Road is more obvious.

Reversible lanes are good for mega cities to maximize the use of roads. The Chinese capital of Beijing introduced the smart traffic system in 2013.

In downtown Kunming, some drivers said "the tidal lane helped them save at least 10 minutes while passing through the congested sections."

Source: Yunnan Net and Yunnan Traffic Police; Trans-editing by Mo Yingyi