TIANJIN -- A roadway for intelligent connected vehicles (ICVs) was launched as a demonstration project in Baodi district, North China's Tianjin municipality on Monday. This marks the city's first initiative of its kind.

The 11.3 km roadway connects the high-speed train station of Baodi and the Beijing-Tianjin Zhongguancun Tech Town. For a smart bus, traveling through the roadway and making five stops takes only 18 minutes, with the speed of bus driving reaching 70 km per hour.

The roadway is equipped with a cloud control system that enables coordinated sensing, planning and decision-making for the ICVs and real-time monitoring of the vehicles.

All the 19 crossroads along the roadway have been equipped with an intelligent traffic light control system, which gives priority to public transit vehicles and significantly shortens the duration of the bus trip.

The project offers efficient, safe and comfortable public transit services to residents both in the tech town and along the line, said Mao Jinsong, Party secretary of Baodi.