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With Ganeshotsav around the corner and crowds swelling, Maha Metro gears up to run trains every 5 minutes on key Pune routes.
To support the rising demand and future route expansions towards Katraj and Nigdi, Maha Metro has ordered 12 new trains. (Photo Credits: X/Pune Metro)
The Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (Maha Metro) is preparing to increase train frequency on two busy routes – Vanaz to Ramwadi and PCMC to Swargate.
At present, Metro trains arrive every seven minutes during peak hours and every ten minutes during quieter periods. However, this is set to change soon, with plans underway to run trains every five minutes.
What’s Prompting the Change?
As per TOI, officials shared that the move comes in response to the growing number of passengers, especially with Ganeshotsav around the corner. Commuter footfall is expected to rise significantly during the festive period, making more frequent services essential.
According to Maha Metro, an average of 1.75 lakh people travel daily on these two routes. Just a few months ago, the number stood at 1.5 lakh. June saw record-breaking usage, with over 52 lakh commuters opting for the Metro – the highest monthly figure ever recorded.
Many regular travellers say the heavy rains and worsening traffic jams have pushed them to ditch their cars and use the Metro instead.
Extra Coaches in the Pipeline
While plans to add extra coaches to the current three-coach trains are not immediate, all stations and trains are ready to handle six coaches in the future. Officials confirmed that the technical groundwork is already in place to increase the frequency without delays.
More Trains Coming Soon
To support the rising demand and future route expansions towards Katraj and Nigdi, Maha Metro has ordered 12 new trains. These new rakes will take the total fleet size to 46. The order, worth over Rs 430 crore, will be delivered in phases, and each train will have space to add more coaches later on.
Samreen Pall, Senior Sub-Editor at News18, is a Computer Science graduate but a writer at heart, Samreen has one motto that she swears by: ‘Everything is dull and useless if it has no drama in it.’ This motto c…Read More
Samreen Pall, Senior Sub-Editor at News18, is a Computer Science graduate but a writer at heart, Samreen has one motto that she swears by: ‘Everything is dull and useless if it has no drama in it.’ This motto c… Read More
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