Kolkata: Metro to add 12 trains as footfall jumps by 50,000

KOLKATA: Metro’s bulging traffic over the past week has prompted the carrier to add 12 trains from Monday and start services at 7.30am instead of 8am. Rider count on the north-south corridor jumped from 1.2 lakh to 1.7 lakh in just seven days last week.
The 50,000 spike in footfall since last Friday, when Metro resumed operations after a 61-day hiatus, and clocking 1,70,058 footfall this Friday, July 23, prompted the authorities to make the changes. On Saturdays, Metro Railway has been offering the 104 staff specials — for those who had to attend work — that it was running when services were suspended during the second wave.

Last Friday, July 16, the carrier restarted operations with 192 trains and the massive morning rush prompted Metro Railway to announce 208 services and reduce the 7-minute peak-hour frequency to 6 minutes from July 19. But there was no ease in passenger load.
“We can only increase trains to maintain distancing. The state has capped it to 50% commuters now. Metro currently ferries much lower than its pre-pandemic daily passenger load of 6.5 lakh, so we can add more trains,” a Metro official said.
Metro’s pre-pandemic fleet was 288. “Metro will run 220 daily services from Monday to Friday so passengers can travel comfortably,” a Metro statement said on Saturday. Of these, 150 will ply between Kavi Subhash and Dakshineswar. Peak-hour frequency will be 6 minutes and the first trains will leave the terminal stations at 7.30am.