The beginning

History

From the first oil railway of 1880 to the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars corridor.

The beginning

A railway born of oil

The railway came to Baku in 1880 — at the height of the oil boom. The first lines linked the city with the oil fields and with Tiflis (Tbilisi), and at the same time the first station building appeared, built in an ornate Moorish style.

The railway was needed above all for oil: kerosene and equipment were carried along it. But very soon the station became the passenger gateway of the city as well, through which Baku was linked first to the rest of the empire and then to the whole Soviet Union.

Milestones

Through time

1880

The first railway

The railway comes to Baku: lines to the oil fields and to Tiflis. The first station building is built in the Moorish style.

1926

The Sabunchu station

The electrified Baku–Sabunchu–Surakhany line opens — one of the first electric railways in the country. A separate Sabunchu station is built for it.

Soviet era

The main gateway

The station becomes a major hub: trains run from here to Moscow, the Caucasus and across the country, and the suburban service of Absheron develops.

1967

The metro link

The 28 May metro station opens nearby; it is connected to the station by a pedestrian tunnel — a convenient transfer in the city centre.

1977

A new wing

A modern station wing is added to the historic building: the station grows with the city and its passenger flow.

2017

The Silk Road

The station is renovated; the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars corridor opens, linking Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey along the new Silk Road.

In sum

A century and a half on the move

The history of the Baku station is a century and a half of Azerbaijan's railway. From the oil trains of the 19th century to modern international expresses, the station has always remained the gateway of the city.

Today the old Moorish building and the new wings work together, and from the platforms trains still depart — now to neighbouring countries as well.