BAKU – Technical failures in the Azerbaijan Railways (ADY) online ticketing system are drawing strong criticism from passengers, who say they’ve been left stranded, penalized, and forced to repurchase tickets due to systemic flaws and bureaucratic inefficiency.
What should be a seamless travel experience has become a logistical nightmare for many users. Passengers are reporting that tickets purchased through ADY’s website — which seemingly allows incomplete information entry — are being rejected during boarding. Several individuals have been denied access to trains, penalized with fines, and pressured into buying new, often more expensive, tickets on the spot.
Mirkamal Aliyev, a passenger who bought tickets online for the Gabala–Baku route in March, told Oxu.Az he was shocked to learn that only one of his two tickets was refunded — and only after a penalty. The other was rejected entirely because it lacked the serial number of his ID, despite the system accepting the purchase with only a FIN code.
“This is absurd,” Aliyev said. “The system let me pay and download the tickets — but at the station I was told they’re invalid. Why are passengers being held responsible for flaws in ADY’s software?”
Another frustrated user, Ariz Huseynov, said his elderly parents were blocked from boarding a train because their tickets — also bought online — didn’t include their father’s name. “Nowhere did the system flag that field as mandatory. Yet, they were denied boarding and forced to buy new tickets in business class. It’s deceptive and unfair.”
ADY’s official response has done little to reassure the public. Company spokesperson Bakhtiyar Hajiyev acknowledged that the system currently allows purchases without all critical identity fields filled out. But instead of taking responsibility, he placed the burden on passengers to “ensure” proper data entry — even when the system doesn’t require it.
Critics argue this is a classic example of shifting blame onto the customer for poor digital design and lack of transparency. Consumer advocates say the company is exploiting a loophole to sell more expensive tickets and generate revenue under the guise of “technical issues.”
“It’s unacceptable that a state-run railway service still can’t develop a basic functional online ticketing system in 2025,” said transport policy expert Elchin Rzayev. “Passengers are paying the price for bureaucratic negligence. Instead of modernizing, they’re improvising at passengers’ expense.”
Even more troubling is ADY’s vague and inconsistent refund process. In Aliyev’s case, one QR code was accepted for refund, while the second — despite being part of the same order — was not. ADY cited surveillance footage as justification, raising questions about data privacy and selective enforcement.
Social media is flooded with similar complaints, with users accusing ADY of fostering a system where travelers are punished for trusting the company’s digital tools. Critics are now demanding:
A full audit of ADY’s ticketing platform
Mandatory validation checks before payment
Transparent refund policies
Accountability for mishandled tickets and disrupted travel plans
Until such reforms are implemented, passengers remain vulnerable to what many are calling “a digital trap dressed as a modern convenience.”
As the number of affected travelers grows, public trust in Azerbaijan Railways — and its promises of modernization — continues to erode.
