Despite Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) declaring that the frequency of trains will be reduced on holidays, second Saturdays and Sundays, it was not the case on Monday — a general holiday due to Id-ul-Fitr.
“Monday was a working day for me. I assumed that I will have to wait for 15 minutes before I get a train. But to my relief, there were trains every 10 minutes around noon,” said Sri Latha, who uses the Purple Line.
BMRCL’s decision to reduce the frequency on certain days was not received well by commuters. BMRCL officials maintain that frequency will depend on the number of passengers, with the operations control room being in a position to increase the frequency if necessary.
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“It (south line) is a new line and the tracks need to stabilise. A lot of people are trying out the new train. We need to see how many take the train regularly. Even on Monday, around two lakh people had travelled on both lines by 6 p.m.,” said a BMRCL official.
Defending the move to commence services at 8 a.m. on Sundays against 5 a.m. on other days, officials said they need some time to inspect the track, which is the practice worldwide. “The last trains leave Yelachenahalli, Baiyappanahalli, Nayandahalli and Nagasandra at 11 p.m. They reach their destinations by midnight. We are left with only four hours for track inspection, which is why carry out the work on Sundays. There is not much rush on Sunday mornings and track inspection is a safety requirement,” an official explained.