BAKU, Azerbaijan - Key questions about Baku’s proposed passenger cableways remain unanswered two days after the government formally put the systems under Baku Metro’s authority, with routes, stations, costs, construction dates and fares still unannounced.
The Oct. 2 amendment establishes the institutional basis for developing cableways but does not approve a specific line. AZE.US reported the decree when it was issued; the new follow-up brings together earlier city plans, a possible but unconfirmed alignment, an expert fare estimate and Baku Metro’s promise of more information.
President Ilham Aliyev’s amendment expands a May 7 decree that reorganized the capital’s public transport structure. The official presidential decree adds passenger cableways to Baku Metro’s remit alongside the metro, buses, trams and taxis.
Under the revised language, Baku Metro can provide cableway passenger services, improve their quality and safety, introduce digital systems for organizing services and collecting fares, and manage cableway infrastructure from planning through operation. It also calls for integration and centralized coordination with other forms of urban transport.
Routes Remain Unconfirmed
The decision follows earlier public discussion of cableways as part of Baku’s transport plans. In May, Baku Executive Authority head Eldar Azizov said the city intended to introduce new transport options, including cableway and tram lines, in the near term, according to APA.
Earlier Vesti Baku coverage examined a possible Bailov–Boulevard–State Flag Square connection because of the area’s steep terrain and proximity to the waterfront. That alignment remains an editorially discussed option and has not been officially confirmed.
Transport expert Anar Abbasov said Baku’s topography could make cableways useful for daily travel, particularly where elevated or less densely built neighborhoods need links to metro stations and bus routes. He also said cableways could support tourism.
Abbasov estimated that an urban passenger cableway fare could be comparable to other public transport prices or roughly 20% to 30% higher, based on international practice. That figure is an expert estimate, not an announced tariff.
Part of a Broader Transport Reorganization
The original May decree reorganized Baku Metro by bringing BakuBus and Baku Taxi Service into the company’s structure. It made the company responsible for integrating metro, bus, tram and taxi services and applying common digital fare and management systems. The October amendment extends that framework to passenger cableways.
Report.az and APA separately confirmed that the company’s new powers cover cableway construction, operation, safety and integration.
Baku Metro said further information about the prospective services would be made public in the coming days, according to Vesti Baku. Until then, the scale, financing and timetable of the program remain open.