E-W Metro ferries 45L passengers, earns 6.5 crore in last 2 months
Times of India | 18 May 2024
Kolkata: East-West Metro or the Green line ferried around 45 lakh people in the last two months, including 24 lakh in the newly opened Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section. The Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section has earned more despite covering half the distance of Sector V-Sealdah stretch. While the former has earned Rs 3.4 crore, the latter clocked Rs 3.1 crore in two months.
Commercial services along the 4.8km Howrah Maidan-Esplanade stretch, now called Green line 2, started on March 15. East-West Metro, which became operational in phases, currently covers two disjointed sections — 9.4km Sector V-Sealdah and 4.8km Howrah Maidan-Esplanade stretches. The 2.5km Esplanade-Sealdah section is still incomplete even as all the 12 stations are functional. Kolkata’s Line 2 or the Green line will eventually cover 16km from Sector V to Howrah Maidan. Green line 1 — or the Sector V-Sealdah section — carried 21 lakh passengers in the last two months, taking the total East-West Metro ridership to 45 lakhs since March 15 this year. East-West Metro doesn’t run on Sundays.
“Howrah railway station, the junction of both Eastern and South-Eastern Railway, has turned out to be busiest among the 12 East-West Metro stations, recording 11.7 lakh ridership in the last two months,” Metro Railway’s CPRO Kausik Mitra said.
Before the Howrah Maidan-Esplanade section was launched, East-West Metro’s Sealdah station, which is also embedded inside an Eastern Railway station, had the highest footfall. It has now been overtaken by the Howrah Metro station, which has been built inside India’s busiest railway station.
In the last two months, the North-South or Blue line has carried 3 crore passengers and earned Rs 45.8 crore. The New Garia-Ruby or the Orange line, which was also introduced on March 15, has carried around 55,000 commuters so far and earned Rs 11.6 lakhs. The Joka-Majerhat or the Purple line, which was extended by 1.2km from Taratala to Majerhat on March 15, has carried 27,000 passengers and earned around Rs 3.8 lakhs.