Overcast weather and the Champions Trophy finals between India and Pakistan may have brought less crowds to the newly inaugurated Green Line on Sunday, but for those who took the ride, it was a mini picnic with lots of curiosity and excitement.
If the launch of Purple Line on east-west corridor in April 2016 brought hordes of curious people on board, Sunday evening was fairly a smooth affair. The first commercial run from Yelachenahalli Metro Station, the last station in the southern section on the north-south Green Line, had fewer passengers on board when it pulled out of the station. As it gathered commuters en route, the train was almost packed by the time it reached the Kempegowda Interchange, about 25 minutes later.
Earlier, hoping to ride the first train, a few hundred commuters comprising mostly families had started trickling in at Yelachenahalli Station from 3.30 p.m. Many hopes were dashed a little later when the shutters were opened at 3.55 p.m. ahead of the first train service commencing at 4 p.m. While queues quickly formed in front of ticket counters, the first few to get the tokens sprung to the platform and boarded the train minutes before it left the station, leaving many still in the queue.
However, the excitement did not die as many took later trips. Nirmal Babu and his daughter Namrata were holding a placard thanking the BMRCL for introducing the metro service at Yelachenahalli Station. “This is a boon for us,” said Mr. Babu.
The train from Majestic station was full of thrilled commuters. Twelve-year-old Swapna, who was travelling to Mysore Road, forced her father to come along for a ride on the new line. Another commuter, Swayamprabha, parked her car at Lalbagh station just before 4 p.m. to board the first train, as her house was visible from the overhead line in J.P. Nagar. “My mother could see the train from inside the house,” she said.
And for Shashikala from Nagasandra, the train has got her closer to her mother’s house in Banshankari. “I can now see my mother more often,” she said. Amudha, a resident of Thyagaraja Nagar, said she works in the World Trade Centre near Yeshwantpur. “I used to spend ₹4,000 every month; now I can travel for much lesser,” she said.
