CHENNAI: As footfalls rise steadily in metro stations, several commuters fear contracting the virus in crowded trains during peak hours. This has forced many regular commuters to stop taking the metro rail altogether.
CMRL resumed services on June 28 with strict Covid safety protocols, which included operating trains with 50% occupancy. Officials said on an average, 47,000 people are now using the service every day. This is mainly due to office-goers getting back to workplace. Metro rail recorded an average of 1.16 lakh passengers daily in the pre-covid times.
Gladys, who takes the metro rail from Thirumangalam to LIC, said social distancing norms have gone for a toss inside metro rail compartments. On Monday, the Wimco Nagar to Airport line recorded an unusually high traffic. The line links Central metro and Anna Salai.
“There were 21 passengers who were seated, including seven squeezed in on a single seat, while about 21 passengers were standing. This was the situation in the ladies’ coach,” she said. “What is the metro going to do about the crowd? Metro trains are airconditioned and closed. I cannot bear the risk. I have decided to stop using the metro from Tuesday,” she added.
Several other commuters said trains are already full when they arrive at the Central station because of the rise in passenger traffic after the opening of the 9km north Chennai line. “The crowd is more at stations like Wimco Nagar and Thiruvottiyur. By the time the train reaches Central, it is packed and there’s barely any space to stand or maintain any distance,” said S Vijay, a resident of Tondiarpet, who takes the tube from Thousand Lights daily.
At a time when the metro is struggling to attract people, CMRL officials said they cannot stop passengers from using the services. “We cannot stop people from using our service, but we ensure better train frequency and strict adherence to masks,” an official said.
