KOLKATA: Metro on Friday breached 4.5-lakh ridership, only four days after it had crossed the 4-lakh mark and less than a month since it achieved a 3.5-lakh daily passenger count.
Authorities are attributing the steep jump in footfall to the return of the token system and are also bracing for the heavy rush in the festive season along the North-South line.
Metro on Christmas Eve clocked 4,52,835 passengers, attaining the 4.5-lakh milestone on the Kavi Subhas-Dakshineswar corridor. On Monday, 4,05,596 rode, and the utility crossed the 4-lakh mark. On November 28, two days after tokens were reintroduced, Metro registered 3,57,764 footfall. And now, with revellers turning to the transport lifeline during the festivities, Metro Railway has already decided to add four trips on weekdays from Monday, and 10 on Saturdays from Christmas Day. But officials said daily services may yet be increased to maintain distancing. From Monday, the utility will have 276 daily services, only 12 short of its pre-pandemic trips when around 6 lakh to 6.2 lakh people took the North-South Metro every day.
