Bengaluru Metro: Crowd Surge after Diwali Holidays!

The Metro system of Bangalore witnessed a record number of ridership on Monday when commuters flocked to the city after the Deepavali break. Even as early as the early morning hours, the chaotic rush was seen with humongous queues stretching into the streets at eight stations.

The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited was taken aback by the number of passengers but was ready for a small-scale operation. The stations were accessed only through one gate, which worsened the congestion. There was frustration among the commuters, as seen on social media by one user, Ashwatthama, who questioned the logic behind closing every entry gate except one at Majestic Station.

Data from BMRCL indicates that peak rise in passengers at respective stations. Kempegowda Interchange recorded 22,852 users and 18,824 users of Nagasandra. Even Yeshwanthpur, Benniganahalli, Dasarahalli, KSR City Station, Krishnarajapura, and Baiyappanahalli registered big numbers with riders at 16,226, 16,088, 12,183, 11,770, 10,487, and 9,488 riders respectively.

The worst sufferers, however, are the daily commuters. H Raghavendra, an accountant, who would normally take the Metro from Nagasandra to Gorguntapalya and then the bus to Hebbal, said, "On Monday, the queue was so long that I took a bus instead, reaching the office at 11 am, instead of 9:45 am." Raghavendra regretted the inordinate delay in opening the extension of the Green Line which could have relieved the overcrowding.

To reduce the delay BMRCL officials posted additional security personnel for manual frisking and kept more officials in concourse and platform areas. In some select stations, the BMRCL kept automatic fare collection gates open for a fast passage.

However, with such measures, there were extreme delays and inconveniences to commuters. BMRCL needs to look for better preparedness on their part for the next holiday season with adequate infrastructure and more men to handle increased ridership.

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