The maximum carrying capacity of the lift is eight. The ride from Baiyappanahalli to MG Road, which otherwise takes a minimum of 40 minutes, might take only 14 minutes on the Metro, but not for these people who spent over 45 minutes in the lift, gasping for breath.
Speaking to Deccan Herald, George John, 30, said: “I told the lift operator not to allow more people into the lift after an elderly couple, their grandson and our family had entered into it. But he allowed another couple into the lift and as a result, we got stuck.”
John, who was with his father-in-law F Philips, 55, mother, wife and his three-month-old son, registered a complaint at the depot soon after they were retrieved from the lift.
They had entered the lift around 12.45 pm and were stuck in it till around 1.30 pm.
A Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) official at the depot said on condition of anonymity: “We could have opened the lift within minutes, but we are not equipped with any tools, including the emergency keys, required for the operation.”
Another official pointed out that Schindler Electrics, which was supposed to hand over the lift operations to the BMRCL before the inauguration of Reach-1 was yet to do it.
“They (Schindler) had to come from their office at Indiranagar and open the lift using emergency keys, which took a lot of time. We are also trained for the task, but it’s just that we are yet to receive the tools used in such operations,” said a BMRCL official.
When Deccan Herald verified the complaint registered at Baiyappanahalli depot, it was found that this was the second complaint since the inauguration of Reach-1. In the first instance, an individual had registered a complaint after he lost his mobile phone.
John, who lodged the complaint at 1.45 pm, was apprehensive to allow this paper to use his photograph or that of his family. The others who were stuck in the lift had left before the reporters could reach the spot, as they were tipped off by a BMRCL staff.
While John’s family was happy after a smooth ride to Baiyappanahalli from MG Road, where John had parked his car, the incident left them wondering about the safety measures in place for a project that is expected to carry more than 40 per cent of the City’s travelling population in a few years.
Denial mode
BMRCL spokesperson B L Y Chavan, contrary to what the officials at the depot said, maintained that the Schindler personnel were present at the station and that the lift was opened in a matter of a few minutes.
However, the official complaint lodged by John reads: “My family and I were stuck in the lift for over an hour. I request the BMRCL to take the issue seriously so that other passengers do not get into such a situation.”