The subway line passing through the underground of Baku is about to undergo a comprehensive transformation. The Asian Development Bank has officially approved loan funds to inject funds into the digital transformation of local subway signals. This transformation is a key part of the $2.6 billion expansion blueprint of the Baku Metro and also opens up new channels for domestic rail transit enterprises to go global.

Fund platter

The total investment of the project is 515.07 million US dollars, with a loan of 302.38 million US dollars provided by the Asian Development Bank, a joint financing of 79.98 million US dollars provided by the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and the remaining 132.71 million US dollars borne by the government of Azerbaijan. The project will replace the original signal equipment with the CBTC system, upgrade the control center, build digital platforms for passenger flow management, network security, etc., and simultaneously carry out talent cultivation to promote more women to enter technical positions. As early as January 2026, a delegation from Baku Metro visited China to coordinate signal technology and investment and financing cooperation with institutions such as China Railway Signal&Communication Corporation, and bilateral exchanges continued to advance. Keywords: Baku Metro, Rail Transit Going Global

Expansion Layout

The current operating mileage of Baku Metro is about 40.7 kilometers, with a total of 27 stations and a passenger volume of 220.4 million by 2025. The local expansion plan with a total scale of 2.6 billion US dollars will be implemented in three phases. The first phase will build two vehicle depots and optimize the existing stations on the Green Line. The second phase will promote the extension of the Green Line tunnel, stations, and supporting control systems. The third phase will purchase new vehicles to meet the demand for capacity updates, with plans to add 20 kilometers of tunnels, 9 stations, and 300 trains.Editor/Min Jing