Kochi metro trains will operate at a frequency of every 10 minutes once operations resume on September 7 (Monday), after a gap of over five months.
Services will resume in a staged manner. Trains will thus operate from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. and again from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m., on September 7 and 8. There will thus be no service from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Trains will operate every 10 minutes from 7 a.m. to 12 noon and from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., from September 9.
The frequency will be every 20 minutes, from 12 noon to 2 p.m., Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) informed.
The last train will depart from terminal stations at Aluva and Pettah at 9 p.m. On Sunday, the service will start only at 8 a.m.
“We are trying to make the arrangements as passenger-friendly as possible. Kochi metro wants to ensure that the trains are clean, hygienic, and fully sanitised,” said Alkesh Kumar Sharma, managing director, KMRL.
In addition, the halting time at stations has been extended from 10 seconds to 20 seconds. This is to ensure proper ventilation and fresh air circulation. Trains will halt at the terminal stations — Aluva and Pettah — for a minimum of 5 minutes, as the layover time, with all doors kept open to enable fresh air circulation.
Aimed at ensuring physical distancing, passengers will have to occupy alternative seats. Stickers have been pasted on seats which have to be left vacant. Each train will carry a maximum of only 100 passengers, including a few in standing position. Spare trains will be kept ready in case of a sudden surge in the number of passengers.
Little impact on bus services
The resumption of Kochi metro services from Monday will have negligible impact on around 200 private buses which now operate in the city and suburban towns, bus operators said.
The pandemic scare and the subsequent fall in the number of passengers have resulted in the number of buses that operated services intra-city and from mofussil towns to Kochi from 2,200 to 200. Of this, only 15 buses are operating on the Aluva-Ernakulam route, beneath the metro corridor.
“The metro resuming service will not affect the patronage for buses, since the metro carries mostly commuters who otherwise rely on private vehicles. Many consider buses safer than the metro, since there is no air conditioning,” said K.B. Suneer, general secretary of Ernakulam District Private Bus Operators Association.
A bulk of private buses, numbering 2,000, are parked for months together, after their operators submitted G-form to the Motor Vehicles Department, seeking temporary halting of service.
Another bus operator, Nisar Karukapadath, said the number of buses that operated on the Vyttila-Vyttila circular route had come down from 40 during pre-COVID days to seven now. “We stop service at 6.30 p.m., since the government has permitted operation from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. It would be ideal if buses are permitted to operate till 9 p.m., so that operators can gain revenue from evening peak hours,” he added.