Commute chaos: Metro Yellow Line disruption spills on to streets

Metros did not ply on the route between Sultanpur in Delhi and Guru Dronacharya metro station from 5.45 am (the time the first metro leaves HUDA City Centre) till 10.07 am on Monday, said DMRC officials

Gurugram: Thousands of metro users were left stranded for over four hours in Gurugram and other parts of Delhi NCR on Monday morning after the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s (DMRC’s) yellow line developed a technical issue.

(Representative photo)The unavailability of metro service resulted in long queues and confusion among commuters (PTI)

Metros did not ply on the route between Sultanpur in Delhi and Guru Dronacharya metro station from 5.45 am (the time the first metro leaves HUDA City Centre) till 10.07 am, said DMRC officials. This is usually the peak morning rush hour for officegoers, students, and workers.

The unavailability of metro service resulted in long queues and confusion among commuters. Lines stretched well beyond the entrance to some of the metro stations such as HUDA City Centre, Sikanderpur, Guru Dronacharya, and MG Road metro station, with DMRC closing the entry gates of the latter for one hour between 8.30 am and 9.30 am due to the heavy rush. Passengers were only allowed to exit the metro station during this period.

Amidst the chaos and uncertainty, large crowds gathered outside the metro stations along the main carriageway in the hope of finding a ride to Delhi and Gurugram, which also resulted in heavy congestion on stretches near the affected metro stations, especially on the Mehrauli-Gurgaon (MG) Road.

Such was the rush on main roads between the HUDA City Centre and Sikanderpur metro station, which also passes via the IFFCO Chowk and MG Road metro station, that commuters who usually take 10 to 15 minutes to cross the stretch, took over 30 minutes on Monday morning.

In a desperate attempt to get to Delhi, hundreds of commuters could be seen asking two-wheelers, pick-up trucks, and private cars, to ferry a ride to Sultanpur metro station, the first point in Delhi where the metro service was functional.

Many commuters had to come up with last-minute alternative arrangements to reach Delhi and pay an exorbitant amount for it.

“We had waited outside the MG Road metro station for more than two hours, and there was no change in the situation. I and three more metro commuters hailed a private cab which charged us ₹150 to drop us at the Sultanpur metro station. There were many others before us, who did the same,” said Anirudh Sharma, a resident of sector 28.

Some commuters, however, weren’t able to find alternative arrangements and covered either a part or the entire remaining journey on foot.

“I come from Ghaziabad to Gurugram daily. At Kashmiri Gate, I got to know that metro services are affected and are operating till Sultanpur only due to some technical problem. I waited at Sultanpur for almost 30 minutes with the hope that the metro might start running in some time but it did not happen. I started walking towards Guru Dronacharya metro station which is next to our office, reached Arjangarh by walking and finally got a cab but reached Gurugram office after two hours due to the jam,” said Veenit Tiwari, a resident of Ghaziabad.

“I travel to Gurugram from Saket for work and today due to a technical glitch in the metro, the entire road was jammed. No passenger car, even asking for a lift from people was of no use as everyone was stuck in the traffic. To avoid the delay in reaching the office, I walked on foot from Sultanpur to Droncharya,’’ said Chesfeeda Mir, a resident of Saket in Delhi.

Due to the heavy rush on the road, Gurugram traffic police also deployed traffic marshalls at several points.

“As soon as we received an alert about the metro problem, 20 marshalls were dispatched to the Aya Nagar border and 15 at the MG Road metro station. The situation was under control,” said Virender Singh Sangwan, DCP traffic, Gurugram police.

According to an official DMRC release, services along the affected line resumed at 10.07am. However, the situation outside the metro stations and the traffic situation only started to return towards normalcy by 11.30 am, said traffic police officials and daily commuters.

“Train services between Sultanpur and Guru Dronacharya stations of Line-2 (Yellow Line i.e. Samaypur Badli to HUDA City Centre) were affected from the start of revenue services till 10:07 AM today due to a technical issue reported in a non-revenue train approaching towards Ghitorni for induction into regular passenger service from Huda City Centre,” said Anuj Dayal, Principal Executive Director, Corporate Communications, DMRC.

As per the DMRC release, during the affected period, regular train service was available between the remaining sections of the yellow line, from HUDA City Centre to Guru Dronacharya and Samaypur Badli to Sultanpur.

“Centralized announcements were done on frequent intervals at station premises and inside the trains to inform the passengers. The issue was resolved at 10:07 AM and thereafter, normal train services were available on the entire Line-2 i.e. from Samaypur Badli to HUDA City Centre,” said Dayal.