Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s inauguration of the two stretches of Pune Metro on 1 August (Tuesday), the MahaMetro commenced the rail service on both lines within three hours of the official launch.
The ridership quickly increased to 12,000 by the end of the day, which was almost three times the average daily ridership. The following day, the ridership reached an astonishing 30,000 by 9 pm.
Since the launch of the Pune Metro service last year, it had an average daily ridership of 4,000 — when operating trains from Pimpri to Phugewadi (Purple Line) and from Vanaz to Garware College (Aqua Line).
Due to its short coverage, the route experienced low ridership as it served limited utility for daily commuting needs.
However, after the MahaMetro started additional operations between Phugewadi-Civil Court (Purple Line), and between Garware College-Ruby Hall Clinic (Aqua Line) stretches — the number of commuters opting for this mode of public transport increased to around 12,500 by 5pm on Tuesday.
Swarajya’s report on the day of the launch highlighted the positive outlook surrounding the introduction of the new metro lines.
These expansions have significantly increased the metro’s reach — to include several critical regions, making it more relevant and accessible to a larger population.
The recent launch has now open approximately 24 km of the total 33 km network for public use.
“In six hours on Tuesday, both the stretches collectively recorded a ridership of 12,500. While 7,500 commuters travelled on the Garware College to Ruby Hall Clinic route, 5,000 commuters used the Metro on the Pimpri to Shivajinagar stretch,” MahaMetro chairman and managing director Shravan Hardikar stated, as per Indian Express report.
The day after the inauguration, the ridership on both stretches of the Pune Metro exceeded 30,000 by 9pm.
According to the IE report, the Vanaz to Ruby Hall Clinic route had the highest ridership, with 19,500 commuters using the service. On the Pimpri-Shivajinagar civil court route, 10,500 commuters utilised the metro, states Hardikar.
According to officials, the first day of the metro service saw a lack of awareness among daily commuters about the new stretches.
However, there was a significant increase in ridership on Wednesday, indicating a potential record jump in the future. The response will be further evaluated after at least a month.
Regarding the possibility of extending the metro service timings, Hardikar stated that a decision will be made based on the response.
If there is an overwhelming crowd in the evening, the timings may be extended. On the inaugural day, the service ran until 11pm, while the regular timing is until 10pm.