Astana Light Metro

The initial plan was termed "LRT", yet images show light metro trains.^[3] Construction should have finished roughly about the same time as the Almaty Metro, which was estimated for 2010. However, completion was postponed several times, in 2011 completion was scheduled to coincide with the Expo in 2017^[4] and by October 2017 the first stage was planned to be commissioned in December 2019.^[3] Project authority Astana LRT LLP signed an agreement with a consortium of China Railway International Group (subsidiary of China Railway Group Limited) and Beijing State-Owned Assets Management Co for construction of the first phase of the capital’s urban rail project on 7 May 2015.^[5] Construction began in May 2017.^[6]

The light metro is part of former president Nursultan Nazarbayev's Kazakhstan 2030 economic plan to transform Kazakhstan into an economic power.

Video renders of the proposed system show the lines built on viaducts running adjacent to roads, with enclosed stations offering heating and ventilation systems to protect passengers from the extreme weather variations in the city.^[7]

The Chinese company constructing the project went bankrupt in early 2019, causing the city government to order an indefinite suspension of the project.^[8] Since then, the half-built remnants of the project have become a prominent symbol of corruption within the country.^[9][10]

As of 2023, construction has restarted and the system was planned to open by 2024-2025.^[11] In 2024, it was clarified that the system was planned to open in 2025, later postponed to May 2026. The Astana light metro will feature ground and elevated stations, with 18 stations spanning a total length of 22.4 kilometers. It will also launch 19 units of rolling stock, each capable of carrying 652 passengers.^[12] In 2025, the first trains from CRRC Tangshan were delivered.^[2]

On 16 May 2026, the official opening of the Astana LRT took place with the participation of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

The 21.5 kilometres (13.4 mi) North-South route would link Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport with Astana-Nurly Zhol station via the modern "Left Bank" area of the city center. The line will have 18 stops and one depot.^[13] Capacity is estimated to be 146,000 people per day.^[14][3]

A total of 19 trains^[15] will run on the line at average intervals of 4–5 minutes. Each train has a capacity of 652 passengers.^[16]

In August 2025, the Astana City Administration approved the final names for Line 1 stations.^[17] Previously, all stations were numbered from 101 to 118, with the first digit indicating the line and the other digits numbering the stations in sequential order, starting from the Airport station.

Original plans show further phases to link other areas of the city.^[18]

• Almaty Metro
• Lists of urban rail transit systems