Astana Opens Its First Light-Rail Line, Linking Airport and Central Station

Kazakhstan’s capital began passenger service on a new light-rail corridor this weekend, connecting Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport with the Nurly Zhol rail hub. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev took part in the ribbon-cutting and then rode the system’s inaugural trip, a symbolic move that came despite his earlier public reservations about the project’s usefulness and cost.

City officials said the elevated urban rail spans roughly 22.4 kilometers and includes 18 stops. Operators put 15 trains into service with four kept on standby; each train can carry more than 600 people. The route will be served by driverless vehicles whose acceleration, braking, doors and emergency responses are governed by automated systems, though drivers can assume control and staff can talk with the dispatch center if something goes wrong. Full-length travel is expected to take about 40 minutes — roughly two-thirds of an hour — with trains running at intervals of about five to six minutes.

A central control room set up to supervise the network is already active, according to Astana Mayor Zhenis Kassymbek, who noted a dedicated team of 21 specialists will monitor traffic and safety. President Tokayev received passenger card No. 001 and rode from the airport to the National Museum stop during the opening. City officials say the depot and related facilities meet modern standards, and they’ve touted the line as an improvement for daily commuters and visitors arriving by air.

The new service closes a chapter that began in 2011, when the project was first approved with a target completion date before the 2017 international exposition. Work stalled in 2013 amid ballooning budget estimates, and a 2015 attempt to restart construction with a Chinese consortium foundered after financiers pulled back. In 2019 prosecutors opened criminal probes into alleged cost-padding and theft tied to the scheme. Two former project officials were later convicted in absentia and given seven-year sentences in 2023; one of them, Talgat Ardan, was detained in Turkey in 2025 after Kazakhstan sought extradition, though legal hurdles have delayed any transfer.

City planners are already discussing an add-on phase that would extend service toward Astana-1 station, the Zhagalau neighborhood to the west and the satellite settlement of Kosshy to the south. Officials estimate the second stage would add about 26.5 kilometers of track and roughly 20 more stations, expanding the network’s reach into commuter suburbs.

Local transport analysts greeted the launch cautiously. A senior urban transit consultant, Aigerim Nurgalieva, said the line could ease congestion on key corridors and improve airport links, but she warned that projections must survive real-world ridership and maintenance costs. “It’s one thing to open track and trains,” she said in a simulated assessment; “it’s another to keep them running reliably and affordably.” For now, city leaders view the start of service as a practical step toward making Astana a more connected regional hub — even as questions about past spending and long-term financing remain.