Metro rail in Mumbai will resume operations from tomorrow (October 19, 2020) with standard operating procedures (SOPs). Metro services will operate in a graded manner with only half of pre-COVID levels and a third of passenger capacity.
Though the Maharashtra government on Wednesday, October 14 had released fresh guidelines for the resumption of Metro rail services in Mumbai from October 15, Mumbai Metro took a few days extra to accomplish all the safety norms.
According to Mumbai Metro One's new set up the single 11-km line between Ghatkopar and Versova has been curtailed to 12 hours starting from 8:30 am daily.
Only 200 services of trains will be allowed to run with services in either direction in up to 8 minutes as against 5 minutes and 400 services earlier. The train will now carry only 360 people per service as opposed to 1,350 earlier
Trains will ply with temperatures in the coaches fixed between 25-27 degrees Celsius. Most importantly, passengers are supposed to use digital tickets, smart cards or QR code-based tickets in place of tokens to avoid any contact.
Regular disinfection of all the stations and coaches will be carried out by the metro authorities.
Passengers have also been asked to carry minimum luggage and avoid metallic items. The metro authorities have also urged people to use the Aarogya Setu app.
It would be mandatory for passengers to leave the marked seats inside the train coaches vacant.
Over 300 workers have worked through the lockdown period for the upkeep of the trains and the station infrastructure. About 32 of such workers turned positive for COVID-19 of which four continue to be infected.