India’s first underwater Metro records over 1L passengers in first 2 days
In the first two days of the commencement of the commercial run from Howrah Maidan to Esplanade, Metro has recorded more than 1,35,000 cumulative footfalls.
On the first day, the number of commuters crossed 70,000 on this stretch.
Howrah Maidan to Esplanade Metro stretch is part of the EastWest Metro Corridor which aims to connect Howrah Maidan to Salt Lake Sector-V. Earlier, only Sealdah to Salt Lake Sector V section of the corridor was operative but on March 15 the commercial run commenced in Howrah Maidan to Esplanade stretch. The Esplanade to Sealdah stretch is under construction and Metro is aiming to open it soon.
The connectivity between Howrah Maidan to Esplanade has shortened the travel period from nearly 45 minutes to around 10 minutes. Considering it connects Howrah station to Esplanade, which is further the changing point for the commuters to the existing Blue Line that connects Kavi Subhash to Dakshineswar, it has already become a popular mode of transport amongst Railway passengers
as well. According to Metro officials, on the first day, the total footfall registered on this stretch was 70,204. The maximum footfall was registered at Howrah Maidan Metro station which was 23,444 and 20,923 at Howrah Metro station. Mahakaran and Esplanade Metro stations registered 13,453 and 12,384 footfalls respectively.
Apart from daily commuters, there were people who chose to travel via Metro to be part of the historic moment and marvel at the engineering brilliance while travelling underneath the
Hooghly river. Energy was found high amongst the travellers on Saturday as well. According to an official, more than 65,000 footfalls were registered on Saturday.
A total of 130 services–65 from Howrah Maidan and 65 from Esplanade–will be available on this stretch from Monday to Saturday. It will be available from Howrah Maidan and Esplanade stations alternatively on East and West-bound lines at an interval of 12 to 15 minutes. Services will start from 7 am and continue till 9:45 pm. The project cost for this stretch was Rs 4,965 crore.