The Baku suburban railway (Azerbaijani: Bakı şəhərətrafı dəmir yolu) or Absheron Circular line (Azerbaijani: Abşeron dairəvi xətti) is a 91 km (57 mi) commuter rail service which began in 2019, serving the Azerbaijani capital Baku.[2]
In 2018, president Ilham Aliyev announced funding for a suburban rail service for Baku.[4] The 100 million manat project was to include upgrading the existing railway between Baku and Sumqayıt via Biləcəri, as well as bring back into use the disused route connecting the two cities via Sabunçu and Pirşağı. The plans included 23 stations on the route, which would also have branches to Dübandi and Maştağa, with a branch serving the airport being built in a later phase.
The initial phase of the service was launched in May 2019, connecting Baku station with Sabunçu via four intermediate stations.[5][6] By 2020, the line was extended to Sumqayit, linking to the existing Baku–Sumqayit railway to form a circle line.
A total of 20 passenger railroad stations are planned to be reconstructed / commissioned / built on the Absheron Peninsula by the end of 2027, including the construction of 4 new stations between Balajari Station and Baku Railway Station, AzVision.az reports, referring to the 'Baku city General Plan 2040.
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