After establishing BRT as a priority, Kunming built its first modern bus lane in April 1999, which marked the earliest practice of BRT in China. Today, five special bus lanes have been constructed and the basic layout of a cross-grid bus lane network is already in place. The system encompasses 63 stations strung out over the 46.7 km of designated bus lanes.

BRT can match the carrying capacity and service level of rail traffic, but its construction and operation costs are much lower that of rail traffic, which makes it suitable for Kunming as a medium-sized city in China. Work continues on the BRT system, as Kunming works to reach its end goal of 63 km of designated bus rapid transit lanes.

The system has come under some criticism for failing to situate its stations with safe and easy pedestrian access.