The Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL), after suffering major losses due to the COVID-19 induced lockdown, is beginning to see operational profits and a steady climb in ridership numbers for the first time in two years. Speaking to TNM, BMRCL Managing Director Anjum Parwez said, "Usage of the metro has grown during the past few months on both lines. As a result, we are operating profitably for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“Our daily ticket box revenue fluctuates between Rs 1 crore and Rs 1.13 crore, whereas our daily expenses, which include power, employee salaries, maintenance and other costs, range from Rs 1 crore to Rs 1.05 crore. We are hopeful that the numbers will rise even more in the days to come," he said. Asked about the possible reason behind the rising ridership numbers, he said, “A lot of companies who were based online are now opening up. Another reason is the decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases, due to which more people are taking the metro for their daily commute.” In May this year, reports stated that the Bengaluru metro saw its highest-ever daily ridership at 4.62 lakh.
He further said that in an effort to ease metro ridership, the BMRCL is planning on introducing QR code-based ticketing systems, enabling passengers to buy tickets using the Namma Metro mobile application. Once the project is launched, Anjum said that passengers won’t have to carry tokens or smart cards, as they can simply scan the QR code on their phone at the metro stations. Currently, passengers can buy metro tickets — in the form of tokens and smartcards — at the counter or through ticket vending machines.
On August 8, BMRCL announced that metro trains would operate at a frequency of 15-minute intervals rather than 20-minutes during non-rush hours. As a result, the first and last trains of the day operate between 5 am-6 am and 10 pm-11 pm.