ASTANA – Kazakhstan’s national rail carrier transported more than 6 million passengers during January-June. Almaty recorded the highest passenger departures with 993,000 travelers, followed by Astana with 855,000 and Shymkent with 393,000, reported the Passenger Transportation’s press service on July 2.
Strong passenger traffic was also reported from the Aktobe Region, with 615,000 passengers, followed by the Abai Region (413,000), the Karagandy Region (390,000), the Kyzylorda Region (366,000), and the Zhambyl Region (286,000), highlighting steady demand for rail services between major cities and regional destinations.
To accommodate increased travel during the summer season, the national carrier introduced 15 additional rail routes, including four extra Talgo trains and three suburban services. Additional trains and carriages were deployed on routes connecting Astana, Almaty, Semei, Oskemen, Kyzylorda, and Pavlodar with Dostyk, while capacity was also increased on high-demand services linking Almaty, Astana, Shymkent, Aktobe, Karagandy, Balkhash, and Semei.
The company said passengers continue to actively use its waiting list service, which enables travelers to purchase tickets released through cancellations. Since the beginning of the year, more than 84,000 seats have been offered through the service, resulting in the sale of over 28,000 tickets.