AZE.US
Passenger rail service between Baku and Tbilisi will resume on May 26, restoring one of the main overland travel links between Azerbaijan and Georgia after years of disruption.
Azerbaijan Railways, or ADY, says the renewed Baku-Tbilisi-Baku route will operate with modern sleeper cars produced by Switzerland’s Stadler Rail Group. The older trains previously used on the route have been taken out of service, and the new trains will not include low-cost open sleeper, or platzkart, cars.
Under the preliminary schedule, the train will depart Baku daily at 11:10 p.m. and arrive in Tbilisi at 8:41 a.m. the next day. In the opposite direction, it will leave Tbilisi at 9:00 p.m. and arrive in Baku at 6:24 a.m.
In Azerbaijan, the train will stop at Baku Railway Station, Bilajari, Yevlakh, Ganja, Aghstafa and Boyuk Kasik. In Georgia, stops are planned at Gardabani and Tbilisi Railway Station.
The minimum one-way fare from Baku to Tbilisi will start at 81 manats. Tickets from Yevlakh to Tbilisi will start at 67 manats, from Ganja at 62 manats, from Aghstafa at 57 manats, and from Boyuk Kasik to Gardabani at 51 manats.
ADY says fares are shaped by several factors, not distance alone. These include comfort class, the international nature of the route, maintenance costs, locomotive and service expenses, and tariff components on the Georgian side. International rail fares are also linked to calculations involving the Swiss franc, meaning exchange-rate changes can affect ticket prices.
The new Stadler cars are being presented as a more comfortable night-travel model. Compartments will include card-operated doors, individual temperature and lighting controls, a call button for attendants, sound insulation, safes, power sockets, internet access, TV monitors, clean bedding and travel kits. The trains are also expected to include shower facilities and accessibility arrangements for passengers with limited mobility.
Border and customs procedures will be carried out on board the train. On the Azerbaijani side, control will take place at Boyuk Kasik station, while on the Georgian side it will be carried out at Gardabani. Each stop is expected to last 60 minutes, and passengers will not be required to leave the train.
According to ADY, the train will cover the 498-kilometer section from Baku to Boyuk Kasik in 6 hours and 10 minutes, with an average speed of around 100 km/h on Azerbaijani territory. In Georgia, the average speed will be about 50 km/h, which ADY links to infrastructure conditions on the Gardabani-Tbilisi section.
The company expects the route to carry around 100,000 passengers a year.
For travelers, the main appeal is the return of a direct overnight link between the two capitals: boarding in central Baku in the evening and arriving in central Tbilisi the next morning. But the restored route also comes with a clear change from the old model: higher comfort, fewer budget options and fares that reflect a more expensive post-pandemic operating environment.
AZE.US