About 40,000 people travelled using the entire Metro rail service on Sunday, the first day of service on the underground stretch from Thirumangalam to Nehru Park, officials said. The 7.6-km underground stretch with seven stations was inaugurated after being under construction for five years.
The elevated Koyambedu-St. Thomas Mount stretch is connected to the underground Thirumangalam-Nehru Park by a link ramp beyond Koyambedu station. So, commuters can take a direct ride from Nehru Park in Kilpauk to Chennai airport covering 17 stations.
On Monday too, hundreds of passengers, who didn’t get a chance to travel on Sunday, took a ride.
‘Fantastic experience’
L. Katyayani, a resident of Alandur, travelled all the way just to get a feel of the underground Chennai Metro Rail. “It was fantastic and the way the train glided from the elevated stretch to the underground stretch was beautiful. I have never travelled in any other Metro Rail and this was a fascinating experience,” she said. Many commuters said it was a refreshing change to travel through air-conditioned stations for the first time.
V.G. Jayakumar, a resident of Anna Nagar, said he would love to take this facility if it is extended up to Madras High Court.
“Given the city’s humid weather, I will be more than willing to travel with this comfort if they make it operational till Parry’s Corner. I can easily travel in about half an hour avoiding the traffic,” he said.
Officials of the Chennai Metro Rail Limited said the average number of passengers travelling by Chennai Metro Rail will go up now. “Even otherwise, from about 10,000 passengers two years ago when the first stretch Koyambedu-Alandur was opened, it has gone up to 12,000 when the second stretch from Little Mount to the Chennai airport was made operational. We expect it to increase further in the coming weeks,” an official said.
