The Almaty–Tashkent women-only carriage will be added to the daily international train from October 1. It will operate as part of train No. 1/2, with tickets available only to female passengers and onboard service provided exclusively by women conductors.
INTERNATIONAL: This concise weekly review presents a selection of rail freight news published from July 26 to August 1, 2026: terminals, network access, operating incidents and rolling-stock developments.
KAZAKHSTAN: Kazakhstan Temir Zholy transported 157.1 million tonnes of freight across its network in the first half of 2026, as exports increased by 2.9 million tonnes year on year.
EBRD investment in KTZ bonds will reach up to USD 125 million. KTZ, Kazakhstan’s national railway operator, is issuing the Eurobond. The financing will support passenger station modernization in Kazakhstan. Also, it will support infrastructure works on the Trans-Caspian Corridor. The route is becoming increasingly important for transport between Europe and Asia. This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.
Locomotive production in Kazakhstan fell by 20.5% over January–November 2025. During that period, the country built 62 diesel locomotives, compared with 78 units in the same months a year earlier. The figures are shown in a table published by the Bureau of National Statistics of Kazakhstan.
The Infrastructure Design Bureau has been set up within Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ). The launch was covered by industry outlets, including Rail-news.kz.
A freight wagon surplus in Kazakhstan has led the country’s largest market operator — “Kaztemirtrans” (part of KTZ) — to halt new purchases until real demand appears. The pause in fleet renewal, as company chairman Alexander Shyryaev explained, is directly linked to the current market situation. He outlined the decision in an interview with the industry newspaper “Қазақстан теміржолшысы”.
Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ) has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Wabtec to provide financial support of $1.6 billion to improve its locomotive park, innovate, and develop the railway transport system in Kazakhstan.
Passenger railway cars made by Stadler, and manufactured at its plant in Astana, Kazakhstan, have successfully passed a series of tests operating under climate conditions in northern Kazakhstan. These tests proved that despite extreme temperatures, the new railway cars are comfortable and of good quality.
The TE36A locomotive was officially approved for Kazakhstan service and the first two cars have already been delivered at Kazakhstan Temir Zholy’s depot in a new chapter in cooperation with Chinese builder CRRC.
Kazakhstan Temir Zholy made an order for procuring 270 hybrid shunting locomotives from CRRC, and the project will consolidate industrial partnerships, provide job creation, and reduce railway operating expenses.
Kazakh firm Prommashkomplekt, under the umbrella of Railways Systems KZ, is gearing up for export growth and supplies of railway wheels into Europe. Output continues steady at the 260,000–270,000 monthly level, however, EU certification will be the deciding step for market entry.
