Chennai Metro Rail has started issuing issue trip cards to commuters at discounted rates in an attempt to increase patronage. With effect from Tuesday, commuters will get a 20 per cent discount from the original fare on using the trip cards for their rides in the 10 km stretch between Koyambedu to Alandur.
Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) officials said there are three types of trip cards — one for 12 trips valid for seven days, 50 trips for 30 days and 100 trips for 60 days. “This will be very useful for commuters who travel on a daily basis. More than 10,000 people travel on the stretch everyday,” an official said.
After the launch, CMRL introduced travel cards with 10 per cent discount. This trip card is similar to the travel cards but has additional discounts and is meant for regular commuters. Further, the trip card has a refundable deposit of Rs. 50 which will returned on surrendering the card, officials said.
Meanwhile, CMRL has entered the instagram platform on Monday. It is already visible on Facebook with over 2 lakh likes and has over 2,000 followers on Twitter.
Chennai Metro Rail built at a cost of Rs. 14,600 crore, was thrown open for use only in June last between Koyambedu and Alandur. The fare for this stretch range between Rs.10 and Rs. 40 and for the special class is between Rs. 20 and Rs.80. EOM
