Almaty SkyTrain — Elevated Monorail Rapid Transit System

Almaty SkyTrain is a 42-kilometre, 20-station elevated monorail rapid transit system for Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city and its financial and commercial capital. The city has 2.2 million residents within an agglomeration approaching three million, and around 400,000 vehicles enter it from the surrounding region every day. Sustained congestion, constrained road capacity and air quality in a mountain-rimmed basin have made grade-separated mass transit a strategic priority for the city and for the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The system comprises two lines. Line 1 runs 29 kilometres with 16 stations from the Barlyk intermodal hub in the west, along Raiymbek Avenue, Sain Street and Al-Farabi Avenue and the Eastern Bypass, to the Eastern Gate intermodal hub. Line 2 runs 13 kilometres with four stations along Raiymbek Avenue. Both lines are fully elevated and grade-separated, entirely independent of road traffic, and terminate at intermodal hubs that also serve the metro, the Almaty Light Rail Transit line and regional bus services. A depot is planned at Abay village in Karasay district. Target ridership is approximately 40 million passengers a year on each line, with future extensions envisaged towards Kaskelen, Talgar and the new city of Alatau.

The client is the Road Infrastructure Development Department of Almaty City. Integra Construction KZ LLP is the contractor, DO KazNIISA LLP the designer and author's supervisor, and KTB Partners LLP the technical supervisor. In June 2026 memoranda of understanding were signed in Beijing with CRRC Corporation Limited, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation and Beijing Urban Construction Design & Development Group covering system technology, rolling stock and construction.

Design is 15 per cent complete, with topographic survey at 54 per cent and 105 designers, surveyors and geologists mobilised. Enabling works and utility relocation begin in September 2026; State Expert Review approval is targeted for January 2027; Line 1 is due to open in December 2028 and Line 2 in December 2030. Preliminary construction cost is KZT 546.25 billion, approximately USD 1.16 billion, excluding utility relocation.