Almaty administration targets traffic jams with new class schedule proposal

Tengrinews.kz – Almaty’s city administration has suggested introducing staggered start times for university classes in a bid to ease morning traffic congestion and reduce pressure on public transport. Tengrinews.kz spoke to several universities to find out whether students are really overloading buses during rush hour.
Flexible schedules already in place
Kazakh National University named after al-Farabi, with 28,000 students, said classes already begin at different times depending on the program: some start at 8 a.m., others at 9 or 10.

“Roughly 3,000 students begin classes each hour. Master’s and PhD students usually attend after 5 p.m. Each program has its own schedule,” the university noted.

Asfendiyarov Medical University explained that traffic jams are not a problem for its freshmen.

“All first-year students – that’s 2,223 people – are provided with dormitories located near campus. They walk to class. Our upper-year students also study on a staggered schedule, so there’s never been a situation where everyone starts at the same time,” the administration said.

Satbayev University also offers flexibility: from the second year, students can choose their own lecture times. A similar system operates at Turan University, where 6,500 students begin classes depending on their faculty’s timetable.
Why the change matters
According to official data, Almaty is home to 202,000 university students and more than 360,000 schoolchildren. With the start of the new academic year, residents have complained of overcrowded buses and long traffic jams during peak hours.
Earlier, the city administration also adjusted government office hours, moving the workday start from 9:00 to 8:30 a.m. and extending lunch breaks. Authorities are now considering remote work options for some civil servants and proposing that universities and colleges adopt staggered schedules, with some starting at 8:00 a.m. and others at 10:00.