Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The Tashkent Metro has begun the gradual replacement of traditional ticket booths with automated ticket vending machines.

According to metro officials, this decision is linked to a noticeable decline in the use of single-use QR tickets: whereas nearly half of all passengers previously relied on them, now only 6–7% do.

A QR-code-based single ticket costs 3,000 soums. In contrast, paying with a bank card via a validator costs significantly less — 1,700 soums or even lower, depending on the bank and ongoing promotions.

This price difference is encouraging passengers to shift toward cashless payments.

In the first phase, ticket machines will replace ticket booths in one vestibule at 13 metro stations: Mirzo Ulugbek, Xalqlar Do‘stligi, Paxtakor, X. Alimjan, Pushkin, Do‘stlik, Tashkent, Oybek, Tinchlik, Shahriston, Bodomzor, Minor, and Alisher Qodiriy.

The implementation of the automated ticketing system is expected to improve service efficiency and reduce queues in the metro.