Unlock 2.0: BMTC, Bengaluru metro resume services

BMTC operated 3,200 buses; Namma Metro scheduled 160 trips

Metro services restarted on Monday after two months. BMRCL officials say it will take more than a week for the ridership to improve. DH PHOTO/Janardhan B K

Public transport resumed in the city on Monday with the BMTC operating more than 3,000 buses and Namma Metro ferrying 24,602 passengers.

As the unlock phase began, officials expected passenger numbers to be low for the next few days.

While the BMTC planned to operate only 2,000 buses, demand from more areas meant that they had to increase the numbers to 3,200 by 7 pm. The corporation extended the validity of the BMTC passes till July 8 to compensate for losses incurred during the lockdown.

Namma Metro operated 160 trips, but could not find passengers in many stations. It will take more than a week to reach the one-lakh mark, an official said.

Read | Karnataka Unlock: B'luru Metro sees 18K rides in 4 hrs

For passengers’ convenience, officials have allowed cash transactions to buy and recharge smartcards, departing from the earlier restrictions to ban cash exchange to avoid social contact.

Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) Managing Director Rakesh Singh and senior officials travelled in the trains and spoke to passengers about their experience. Going by the Covid protocol, passengers must undergo thermal scanning and maintain social distancing in using facilities like escalators and lifts.

Passengers have also been asked to keep alternate seats in the train cars empty. Wearing masks has been made mandatory. Officials have taken the help of marshals to enforce all the rules from the beginning of the year.