Why the Baku–Sumgait Highway Jams First: Karavan Rent A Car in Baku Analyses the Capital’s Traffic

Azerbaijan's vehicle fleet grew 31% in five years, and nearly half of those cars drive in Baku. Here's why the city stalls, exactly where, and how to plan your route without losing time.

Karavan Rent A Car in Baku has published an analysis of traffic in the capital on its blog. The piece answers not only where and when the city stalls, but why.

The analysis’s main conclusion: Baku’s jams are driven not by road quality but by the pace of fleet growth. At the end of 2025 Azerbaijan had 1,934,598 registered vehicles, and the fleet grew 31.3% in five years. Around 42% of the country’s passenger cars are in Baku, while more than half the population lives in the capital and on Absheron.

The piece separately explains why the Baku–Sumgait highway almost always tops the traffic management centre’s reports. Sumgait is the country’s second city by number of cars, and it practically adjoins the capital. The daily flow of residents commuting to Baku and back creates the city’s main jam. By experts’ estimates, around 300,000 cars enter and leave Baku each day.

The analysis identifies two weekday peak windows: roughly 7:30 to 10:00 and 17:00 to 19:30. Its key advice to drivers is to weigh direction, not just time: mornings, it’s easier to leave the centre; evenings, to head in.

For the airport, about 20 km from the centre, the piece recommends allowing 40–50 minutes at rush hour instead of the usual 25. Karavan Rent A Car in Baku delivers the car straight to the terminal, so travellers landing at rush hour avoid the trip into the city to collect it.

Read the full analysis on the company’s website. Reach Karavan Rent A Car in Baku by phone, WhatsApp, or Telegram at +994-55-455-22-45.