A system and method are provided for simulating circuits that transmit bidirectional signals between some ports using simulators designed originally for electrical circuits and systems, that eliminate the need for different port interfaces. The system and method can be applied to simulate photonic circuits either standalone or integrated with electrical circuits and systems. In one method implemented by the system potential and flow representations, available for example in Verilog-A simulators, are used to create bidirectional signals on a single bus line to transmit optical signals. In another method implemented by the system, the system auto-configures each optical port type as left or right at runtime or during a pre-simulation initialization to allow for bidirectional signals with a single port interface.