Kolkata: Last Metro blues for passengers; Not enough demand for night trains, say official
Telegraph | 8 March 2025
The last Delhi Metro chugs out close to midnight. In Calcutta, the usual last trains leave at 9.40pm.
Not that Calcutta sleeps earlier. But its Metro winds up early, even when thousands are out on the road, looking for a safe and reliable way to get home.
Another pair of trains — on the north-south Blue Line, the city’s oldest and busiest — leave Dum Dum and New Garia at 10.40pm. But citing low footfall, Metro has levied a night surcharge of ₹10 on a single ride on those two trains.
The carrier seems reluctant to operate the trains. This newspaper has published multiple passenger accounts that pointed to the difficulty in accessing the stations to avail of the last trains. Many gates at the stations are shut.
Metro is linking the surcharge to low demand, but a tour around some of the stations presented a different picture.
Around 10.15pm on March 2, which was a Monday, Esplanade was buzzing with people. Many were waiting near KC Das for buses. Scores were waiting outside the gates of the Metro station near the Grand Arcade. The last train was still more than 40 minutes away.
The Rashbehari intersection was also busy around 10.30pm two days later. Many tried to board a private bus headed to Naktala, the only one in over 15 minutes. It was already packed.
At a time other modes of public transport are few and far between after 10pm, more Metro trains would be a godsend for many commuters.
Some have looked up to the court for help. Multiple PILs have been filed in Calcutta High Court — the last came up for hearing earlier this week — seeking a direction to Metro to increase the night trains. But the court has so far declined direct intervention, only asking the carrier to consider the appeal.
“We run trains according to the passenger demand. Only about 350 passengers are availing the last Metro that leaves Kavi Subhash (New Garia) and Dum Dum at 10.40pm. If there is a genuine demand, it should reflect in the numbers, ” said a Metro official.
In peak hours, a train carries more than 4,000 people, he said.
This newspaper took a couple of rides on the 10.40pm trains last week. The trains were not full, but there were many passengers. Many of them said they had to wait for a long time to get the train but still chose Metro because it was the best option for them.
Subhajit Bandhopadhyay, 25, who manages the books of a computer peripherals unit in Chandni Chowk, is a regular Metro user. He usually takes the Metro that leaves the terminal stations at 9.40pm and reaches Chandni Chowk around 10pm.
“If I miss that train, I have to wait for an hour for the last Metro. But there is hardly any other public transport after 10pm,” said Bandopadhyay, who lives near Tollygunge Metro station.
“The app cabs charge a steep fare. Yellow taxis are worse. Buses are too few,” he said.
Aerena Mukherjee, a Baghajatin resident, works at a pharmaceutical company in Salt Lake. She rides the Metro between Sovabazar Sutanuti and Mahanayak Uttam Kumar (Tollygunge).
“We need more trains between 10pm and 11pm. There are so many like me, who travel to Sovabazar from Salt Lake to catch the night Metro,” said Mukherjee.
Any increase in night Metros will also help transporters as they will provide last-mile connectivity to passengers.
Uttam Ojha, who operates an autorickshaw on the Rashbehari-Deshapriya Park-Gariahat route, said more trains would mean more trips for him.
“Many of the drivers go home after dropping passengers who get off the train, which arrives at around 10.10pm (the one leaving Dum Dum at 9.40pm). I often stay back for another ride with passengers who get off the train that reaches Kalighat around 11.10pm (the one leaving Dum Dum at 10.40pm). If there are more trains in between, many of us will stay put,” said Ojha.
The Delhi Metro website says: “Metro services are generally available from 6.00am to 11.00pm”. The last train between Dwarka Sector 25 and New Delhi on the Airport Express Line leaves the stations at 11.40pm.
In Delhi Metro, the approximate interval between two consecutive trains varies from two minutes 30 seconds to five minutes on different lines. On the Airport Line, it is 10 minutes.
In Chennai and Bangalore, Metro services are available from 5am to 11pm, according to their websites. But unlike Calcutta, there are multiple trains between 10pm and 11pm.