Waiting and riding time longer but Delhi Metro ensures safer ride

As against the average one hour and 45 minutes taken to cover the distance between Dwarka Sector-21 and Noida Electronic city in the pre-pandemic time, the travel time now has increased to around 2 hours and 25 minutes.

With the Delhi Metro back on track after a second break due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this time lasting up to four weeks, commuters are reporting several changes in the travel experience — longer ride, stricter scrutiny to ensure social distancing and long queues outside station gates to get in.

After being shut down for public on May 10, Metro services resumed on June 7 as the government is gradually opening the city after the lockdown. (Money Sharma / AFP)

Hindustan Times on Thursday travelled end-to-end in various Metro corridors to document how travelling in the city’s fastest public transport system has changed after the second Covid-19 induced lockdown and found that travel time has increased by at least 40-45 minutes during peak rush hours both in morning and evening (8am to 12pm and 4pm to 8pm).

Tripti Yadav, a student travelling from Dwarka Sector-21 metro station, said the frequency of trains has gone down “drastically”. Earlier, even after reopening in September last year after the first nationwide lockdown, the waiting time for trains was not more than 10 minutes, but this time, she said, waiting time was sometimes 18-20 minutes.

“Since there aren’t many passengers who board from this station, there are no queues at the station gates but the frequency of trains has really gone down. I have been waiting for 15 minutes already,” Yadav said.

As against the average one hour and 45 minutes taken to cover the distance between Dwarka Sector-21 and Noida Electronic city in the pre-pandemic time, the travel time now has increased to around 2 hours and 25 minutes.

To cover the distance between Huda City Centre to Samaypur Badli (Yellow Line), it now takes around an hour and 55 minutes, instead of 1 hour 30 minutes earlier. The average waiting time at the stations on this corridor is around 14-16 minutes, said several commuters travelling on this line.

After being shut down for public on May 10, Metro services resumed on June 7 as the government is gradually opening the city after the lockdown.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) said the trains are operating at 50% capacity, as per the unlock norms laid down by the government, to ensure social distancing both at the stations as well as inside the trains. DMRC reported an average of 5-6 lakh passenger trips daily.

At more crowded stations, especially those that have interchange facilities such as Rajiv Chowk, Kashmere Gate, and Central Secretariat, commuters were also facing long queues to enter the station. Serpentine queues were seen outside the gates of Rajiv Chowk, which is among the busiest stations in the network.

However, despite the queue, commuters were following social distancing norms. Security personnel also ensured that there was no crowding, and all passengers entering the station premise were sanitised.

“It is taking longer; first the wait at the gates, and then at the security checks. You also have to wait longer at the platform for trains, but the Metro is ensuring that the system is safe. Especially after the second wave, everyone is worried for their safety and at every step, caution is being maintained,” said Neeraj Pandey, a commuter travelling from Rajiv Chowk to east Delhi’s New Ashok Nagar.

Personnel of DMRC’s special task force, which has been constituted to check whether commuters are wearing masks and adhering to social distancing even while inside trains, were also spotted conducting surprise inspections.

“Apart from these regular inspections, we also make routine announcements inside stations and in trains reminding people to follow Covid appropriate protocol,” a senior Metro official said.