Mumbai: With the glorious festival of Navratri around the corner, Chief Minister of Maharashtra and Chairman of MMRDA Eknath Shinde has made the decision to extend the services on Metro Lines 2A and 7 to enhance the comfort and safety of commuters. Additional bus services have also been announced.
Metro extends services from 19th October to 23rd October 2023
Services have been extended from October 19, 2023 to October 23, 2023, paving way for citizens to enjoy long hours of celebration without having to worry about the troubles of traffic and the expenses of late-night travels.
"The festival of Navratri will demand many people to travel late at night, and we made this important decision to ensure their safety and comfort during their travels. It will bring a lot of benefits to the commuters, and this extension will be witnessed as a valuable decision by Mumbaikars as they can now enjoy the festival with much more enthusiasm," a statement by CMO said.
The last metro trains will be available for boarding at terminals ANW (Andheri West) and GUN (Gundavali) at 12:20 am. As a result, 14 more trips will be added to the existing schedule with headway of 15 minutes. The extended total number of trips on weekdays will be 267, whereas the trips correspond to 252 and 219 in numbers on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. The final arrival time of metro trains at terminals Andheri West on Line 2A and Gundavali on Line 7 will be at 01:33 a.m.
Additional bus services during Navratri
The BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport) has decided to run special buses during the upcoming Navratri festival between October 15th to 23th. These buses are intended to accommodate the influx of devotees participating in the 'Mahalaxmi Yatra' within the city.
A senior official confirmed that these special buses will operate from various strategic locations in the city, including Byculla, Mahalaxmi, Sewri, and others, with a primary destination being the Mahalaxmi temple. To ensure the smooth transportation of commuters during the nine-day festival, the BEST will add more than two dozen additional buses to its daily service.
The special buses will be deployed on specific route numbers, including 37, 57, and 151, A-63, A-77, 83, A-357, in order to efficiently serve the transportation needs of the city's residents and visitors during this festive period.
Average 5% metro ridership growth every month
Dr Sanjay Mukherjee, Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA said, "An average growth of about 5 per cent is witnessed every month in the ridership of Metro, which exemplifies the growing preference of Mumbaikars towards the services of Maha Mumbai Metro. Therefore, we are thrilled to have yet another opportunity to improve the safety and convenience of Mumbaikars by introducing additional services during the festival of Navratri. Let your celebrations be elevated by our reliable and uninterrupted services.”
