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My First Ride

Being a meticulous person, the planning for the trip was done the previous day.
Last Updated 24 September 2017, 18:15 IST
Thanks to Deccan Herald, I took my first ride on Namma Metro last week.

For the past six years, since the first section between Baiyyapanahalli and MG Road was opened, I’d never travelled on the newly launched metro. Not that I was avoiding it but I just never felt the need to. For one, there was no metro station till recently near where I was put up in South Bangalore. And, secondly, I was not that keen on braving the Bangalore traffic all the way to MG Road or some other location just to take a joy ride. No way!

However, ever since the South section started recently, I’d been toying with the idea of trying the metro. I was eager to experience this new wonder of our city and I got the opportunity to do so when I had to go over to the DH office.

Being the meticulous person I am, the planning for the trip was done the prior day. I wanted to be absolutely sure that my first trip on the metro went smoothly. I of course knew where the nearest metro station to my home was – I’d been seeing it under construction for years! I then went on to the BMRCL website to check the train routes, the fares, where to buy the tickets etc. I found out that I would need to change trains at Majestic and take another line - Bangalore was now the proud owner of two metro lines! All in all, I found the BMRCL site user friendly and with sufficient information to arm me for my ride.

The day dawned and I took the ride on the metro as planned. I was really looking forward to the trip but, unfortunately, it did not turn out the way I had hoped it would. Reaching the station, I was surprised to see that not all the entrances were open, but I presumed that this being a new station it was still being completed. However, I saw the same at MG Road too. Both had a half-finished look. Also, there were no escalators at this station and only one solitary lift. World over, most modern metro stations have escalators – at least for the ascent. Pity the elderly in our city. Ticket purchase was easy though the counters were limited – I dread to imagine how the counters handle the rush hour crowds. Ideally, they should have installed vending machines for the tickets. The frequency of the trains was also rather sad – I had to wait an average of 7 minutes at each station – and because of this the trains were jam-packed even in the middle of the day. In all, it took me about 50 mins to reach MG Road.

What with the half-constructed stations, poor frequency and mediocre infrastructure – I sincerely feel that Namma Metro is years too late for what it was built - to help solving the traffic chaos of this city. And it has miles to go before it can be considered a world class transport system.
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(Published 24 September 2017, 18:15 IST)

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