contraflow

British

/ ˈkɒntrəˌfləʊ /

noun

two-way traffic on one carriageway of a motorway, esp to allow maintenance work to be carried out or an accident to be cleared

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Freight is queuing on the carriageway between junction eight and 11, while the northbound carriageway has been turned into a contraflow for other traffic.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2022

There wasn’t enough time to organize contraflow from the heart of the city, turning traffic so that it only heads out of New Orleans, officials said.

From The Verge • Aug. 30, 2021

The plan requires the marshaling of military and civilian aircraft, 750 charter buses, Amtrak and the contraflow of major highways.

From Washington Post • Jul. 12, 2019

Kent said it could reverse the contraflow system on a 14-mile stretch on the M20 over a weekend but it would take up to three weeks to remove the concrete barriers.

From The Guardian • Apr. 11, 2019

The contraflow would allow all lanes of every highway to flow outward from the city.

From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023