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Technical glitches lead to an hour of overcrowding on Metro 1
The successive nature of the malfunctions caused platforms to swell with passengers at at least four metro stations on the line – DN Nagar, Azad Nagar, Ghatkopar, and Marol
MUMBAI: Metro services on the Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar route faced overcrowding and a stampede-like situation in multiple stations on Wednesday evening due to technical issues.
The incident happened on the day when the Maharashtra cabinet approved four metro lines in Mumbai (Metro 11), Thane (Ring Metro), Pune (Metro 2), and Nagpur (Phase 2). For Mumbai, Metro 11 (Anik Depot to Gateway of India), valued at ₹23,487.51 crore, got the nod.
According to sources, on Wednesday, two consecutive technical snags led to a cascading effect on the services along the 11.4-km corridor.
A first glitch, the cause of which is unknown, unfolded at around 5.15 pm, which delayed metro services. Within two hours, around 7.15 pm, another one did. The source shared that the doors of the Versova-bound metro were not shutting. Both glitches were attended to on war-footing, and the issues were rectified within a couple of minutes, said an official. However, the successive nature of the malfunctions caused platforms to swell with passengers at at least four metro stations on the line – DN Nagar, Azad Nagar, Ghatkopar, and Marol.
“First of all, metro services were delayed, and then passengers were asked to deboard the train at Azad Nagar. Due to overcrowding inside the following trains, some commuters had to skip a couple of trains to head towards their respective destinations. I guess they won’t take any action unless someone dies,” Andheri resident Dhaval Shah told Hindustan Times.
One of the commuters, Shahbaj Khan, took to social media to update on the delayed metro services and overcrowding at the D N Nagar metro station.
Sandy Joseph, another commuter, took to X to complain about inadequate coaches to manage crowds in peak hour at Metro 1, despite it having the highest ridership. “Instead of adding more lines, please fix the existing one that will benefit so many commuters.”
Mumbai Metro One Private Limited didn’t issue a statement on the disruption.
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