Weekday feel on weekend for C Kol as East-West full run hits the right spots
Times of India | 24 August 2025
Kolkata: Packed trains with several standing passengers marked East-West Metro's full run on Saturday as commuters thronged to the corridor, making full use of the connectivity stretching across Sector V and Howrah Maidan. In some of the bustling stations, the weekend felt like a weekday as the integrated operations hit key locations across the twin cities. The travel anxiety, usually writ large on the faces of Kolkata commuters, had vanished overnight.
With many offices open on Saturday, some travelled to work while others were out to enjoy the weekend. Banibrata Mukherjee, who lives in New Town, took a short cab ride to Sector V station to travel to Howrah station to catch a train to Jamshedpur. "It took me 40 minutes and Rs 130 to reach Howrah station. For most of the journey, which was on the metro, I paid only Rs 30," the 64-year-old, who was going to meet his daughter at XLRI, Jamshedpur, said happily.
| Gold Rates Today in Kolkata | Silver Rates Today in KolkataOn Saturday afternoon, the sprawling Howrah Station was teeming with commuters. Most of them were carrying bags or trolley suitcases as they took the subway escalator that led to Howrah Station's platform 15.
"Never seen so many people in Howrah Station before, that, too, on a Saturday," an RPF official said. Officials estimate the footfall will be close to double of the usual footfall of 24,000 on Saturdays. A large number of passengers from Howrah Station purchased tickets for Sealdah Station and Salt Lake Sector V. At Sealdah, the footfall is expected to be double that of the usaul 23,000 on Saturdays.
Esplanade metro station was also busy as it serves as an interface with the Blue Line. It handled traffic arriving from both Sealdah and Howrah to then switch over to the Blue Line.
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