Bengaluru: Namma Metro is adjusting train services on the Purple Line starting Saturday (July 6) to address overcrowding issues.
On Friday, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) announced it would operate 15 trains instead of nine from Majestic.
Ten of these trains will run up to Pattanduru Agrahara (ITPL), four up to Whitefield and one up to Baiyappanahalli.
During the morning rush hour, trains will originate from Majestic at 8.48 am, 8.58 am, 9.08 am, 9.18 am, 9.29 am, 9.39 am, 9.50 am, 10 am, 10.11 am, 10.21 am, 10.39 am, 10.50 am, 11 am, 11.11 am and 11.22 am towards the east.
There will also be regular trains every 3.3 minutes at Majestic up to 10.25 am.
In addition, six of the 14 trains that currently terminate at Garudacharpalya will run until Pattanduru Agrahara (ITPL/Whitefield). Passengers alighting at Garudacharpalya will get the next metro train towards Pattanduru Agrahara (ITPL) within three-and-a-half minutes.
The BMRCL has also advanced the evening rush hour. Trains will now run every five minutes from Baiyappanahalli to Mysuru Road starting at 4.20 pm instead of 4.40 pm.
There will be no change to train services on the Green Line.
Since the BMRCL opened the entire Purple Line in October last year, trains have been running packed during rush hour. Many commuters say they have to skip several trains before finding space to board.
Shashi Bangalore, a regular commuter, demanded that the BMRCL reveal the frequency of trains running between from Majestic to ITPL between 8 am and 11 am. According to him, trains should run every three minutes during this period.
He also called for the train schedule to be made public and for suggestions to devise an optimal timetable. He criticised the BMRCL for operating trains like the Indian Railways.
He suggested that passengers travelling towards Whitefield/ITPL are being short-changed because "every other train" terminates at Garudacharpalya.
A senior official in the BMRCL explained the challenges in increasing train frequency.
Of the 57 trains available, the BMRCL runs 32 on the Purple Line and 23 on the Green Line. One train is each reserved on both lines.
"Ideally, we should keep 10 per cent of the trains on standby. But given the demand, we run as many trains as possible," the official told DH.
The BMRCL can deploy more trains on the Purple Line only next year.
In 2019, the BMRCL gave China's state-owned CRRC Nanjing Puzhen Co Ltd a Rs 1,578-crore contract to supply 216 coaches (36 trains). Twenty-one of these trains are for the Purple Line and 15 for the Yellow Line.
However, due to India's strained relations with China and CRRC's difficulties in finding an Indian partner to manufacture 204 of these coaches, the BMRCL has not yet received the trains.
According to the timeline, CRRC's partner Titagarh Rail Systems Limited (TRSL) will supply trains for the Yellow Line in August and for the Purple Line early next year.
In May, Namma Metro's average daily ridership hit an all-time record of 7,18,170. On most weekdays, ridership touches 8 lakh.
Each metro train has a carrying capacity of 1,580 and a crush load of 2,000. Crush load refers to the maximum number of people that can fit into a train.