Recently, a newly renovated rest stop on the Beijing-Taipei Expressway went viral, because of its comfortable environment and smart services.

The service area, located in Tai’an, Shandong province, triggered huge discussion across the country. “It isn’t a rest stop, but a luxury mall,” a Chinese citizen named Su Yong joked after having a stop there.

Unlike traditional rest stops, which are built to meet basic demands of the passengers, the one in Tai’an is a mini-sized mall that is super clean.

Since it started trial operations a month ago, the number of people stopping there has increased. Per customer transaction surged to 27 from 20 RMB. In addition, the service station saw a drop in the frequency of uncivilized behaviors, such as spitting, littering, and indoor smoking.

The guidance system that shows the vacancies in the restroom.

Smart restrooms are a major highlight of the service station. It features a smart guidance system that shows the vacancies on a TV screen. It also has family rooms, nursing rooms, and all-gender restrooms in addition to traditional men’s/women’s restrooms.

The rest stop has a self-service supermarket made from containers. Apart from retailing, it can be turned into a vehicle that transports emergency supplies in the event of an emergency.

According to an employee surnamed Sun from Soooner, the company that turned the rest stop into an intelligent one, the station features various smart devices that can monitor traffic flow and realize traffic diversion based on actual conditions.