Queues at the gates, longer wait for trains but Metro ensures a safe ride
NEW DELHI: With the Delhi Metro back on track after a second break due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this time lasting four weeks, commuters are reporting several changes in the travel experience — longer rides, stricter scrutiny to ensure social distancing, and long queues outside stations.
HT on Thursday travelled end-to-end in various Metro corridors to document how travelling in the city’s fastest public transport system has changed after the second Covid-19 induced lockdown and found that travel time has increased by at least 40-45 minutes during peak rush hours both in morning and evening (8am to 12pm and 4pm to 8pm).
Tripti Yadav, a student travelling from Dwarka Sector 21 Metro station, said the frequency of trains has gone down “drastically”. Earlier, even after reopening in September last year after the first nationwide lockdown, the waiting time for trains was not more than 10 minutes, but this time, she said, the wait was 18-20 minutes at times.
“Since there aren’t many passengers who board from this station, there are no queues at the station gates but the frequency of trains has really gone down. I have been waiting for 15 minutes already,” Yadav said.
As against the average one hour, 45 minutes taken to cover the distance between Dwarka Sector 21 and Noida Electronic City before the pandemic time, the travel time now has increased to around two hours, 25 minutes.
To cover the distance between Huda City Centre and Samaypur Badli (Yellow Line), it now takes around one hour, 55 minutes instead of the one hour, 30 minutes earlier. The average waiting time at the stations on this corridor is around 14-16 minutes, said several commuters travelling on this line.
After being shut on May 10 as part of the state government’s lockdown norms, Metro services resumed on June 7 as curbs began being lifted in phases.
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) said trains are operating at 50% capacity, according to the government’s unlock norms to ensure social distancing in stations as well as inside the trains. DMRC has reported an average of 500,000 to 600,000 passenger trips daily after reopening.
At the busier stations, especially those that have interchange facilities such as Rajiv Chowk, Kashmere Gate, and Central Secretariat, commuters were also facing long lines to enter the station. Serpentine queues were seen outside the gates of Rajiv Chowk, which is among the busiest stations.
“It is taking longer; first the wait at the gates, and then at the security checks. You also have to wait longer at the platform for trains, but the Metro is ensuring that the system is safe. Especially after the second wave, everyone is worried for their safety and at every step caution is being maintained,” said Neeraj Pandey, a commuter travelling from Rajiv Chowk to east Delhi’s New Ashok Nagar.
Personnel from DMRC’S special task force, which was constituted to check whether commuters are wearing masks and adhering to distancing were also spotted conducting inspections.
“Apart from these regular inspections, we also make routine announcements inside stations and in trains to remind people to follow Covid protocols,” a senior Metro official said.