In pics: Fault in metro gates at Vaishali, commuters stranded

Chaos prevailed at Vaishali metro station in Ghaziabad as the station automatic fare collection gates malfunctioned on Monday morning.

Chaos prevailed at Vaishali metro station in Ghaziabad as the station automatic fare collection (AFC) gates malfunctioned on Monday morning. Hundreds of commuters boarding the Metro from nearby localities of Indirapuram, Vaishali among others were seen standing in long queues to reach the platform. It took up to one hour to get to the platform from the entry gate during the peak office rush hour, commuters said. The metro trains, however, were running as per schedule.

Chaos prevailed at Vaishali metro station in Ghaziabad as the station automatic fare collection (AFC) gates malfunctioned on Monday morning. (Faizan Haider/HT Photo)

(Mobile pictures by Faizan Haider)

Many commuters decided to return from Vaishali metro station and proceeded to Kaushambi metro station to board the metro for their destinations on Monday morning.

“When I reached metro station around 9.45am, the auto drivers outside the station were telling commuters not to go upstairs as there were long queues inside. I could hear the metro train coming and going. As I was getting late, I decided to take an auto rickshaw and proceeded to nearby Kaushambi metro station,” said Somya Sharma, Vaishali resident. According to officials at the station, the problem was detected around 6.30 am and could be resolved only around 10 am.

The commuters also complained that no announcements were made regarding this issue at the station. What also made matters worse is that the escalators also stopped working and hundreds of commuters lined up to make their way to the upper floors of the metro station.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation spokesperson said that queues resulted due to malfunctioning of the AFC gates and the problem was resolved.

“Nearly all the AFC gates malfunctioned that led to the issue. Some entry gates from gate number 3, 4 were also not working. There was no malfunction of escalators or announcement system reported. The AFC gates issue was resolved,” the DMRC spokesperson said.

The Vaishali metro station is one of the busiest stations in Ghaziabad. Thousands of commuters throng Vaishali metro from Sahibabad, Vaishali, Indirapuram, Vasundhara and Delta colonies to move to Delhi and other areas.