China Telecom rolls out AI-controlled traffic lights on Xiongan's digital road, optimizing signal timing in real time for faster traffic and safer crossings.
© A. Krivonosov
The first fully AI-controlled traffic lights have gone live in China. They’re installed along a “digital road” in the Xiong’an New Area, where China Telecom has rolled out a major intelligent transport system. Instead of fixed cycles, the signals now analyze vehicle and pedestrian flows in real time and decide when to switch to green or red.
The setup uses cameras and sensors mounted on the signal poles to capture data on speed and traffic density. Algorithms quickly spot where congestion is building and recalibrate signal phases to ease bottlenecks. According to the developers, the share of empty green lights has dropped to under two percent — drivers spend less time idling, and traffic moves more smoothly.
The AI traffic lights respond to pedestrians, too: if someone has just stepped into the crosswalk, the system will extend the green, even when there are no cars headed that way. At night, it automatically skips unnecessary phases to avoid wasting time.
China Telecom said it has completed the country’s first digital road, a 153‑kilometer stretch linking highways, interchanges, and tunnels. It looks like a concrete step toward a true smart city, where the transport network stops behaving like rigid hardware and starts acting more like a responsive digital organism.