Regular commuters ignore Metro fare hike, but fewer tokens sold
|
|
|
Mumbai
|
Metro Had 5,000 Travellers Less On Monday
There was a marginal dip in
sales of Metro tokens and smart cards on Monday , the first working
day after the fare hike. However, Metro officials were confident of an
actual increase in ridership over time. Metro sources said, “There
was a marginal dip of around 5,000 commuters on Monday , the first
working day of the new week after fares went up on Friday .“
However, smart card sales dipped only marginally , the sharpest fall was witnessed in sales of tokens. The source said, “The dip is largely because fewer tokens were sold. Token users are not regular commuters. In fact regular commuters, who use smart cards, have continued to travel on the Metro as the fare hike is marginal considering the comfort and time savings vis-avis other modes of transport.“
Mumbai Metro One Private Ltd (MMOPL) was recently allowed to increase fares by the Bombay High Court, and the revised slabs of Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs 30 and Rs 40 (depending on the distance one travels) came into effect from January 9.
On weekdays, the 12kmlong corridor carries 3 lakh passengers daily. The overall average, when weekend figures are also taken into account, was around 2.75 lakh commuters before the fare hike came into effect.
An MMOPL spokesperson said, “A very marginal difference was witnessed in ridership on Monday . It is too early to comment on the reason for the decrease. It requires around a week or two week to identify a trend for the same.“
Another MMOPL source said that there would not be any cause for concern even if there is a drop of 10,000 commuters per day . He explained, “If we consider average fares of Rs 25 in the band of Rs 10 to Rs 40, the revenue loss is around Rs 2.5 lakh per day , which is negligible.“
A Metro official said, “We have fixed the fare on the assumption that ridership will not be affected and we are in fact confident that it will increase as the days pass by .“ Regular commuters said the Metro was as crowded on Monday as on days before the hike. Andheri commuter Arpit Singh said, “The rush in the train at 10.15am was like any other day . I don't think people mind paying an extra Rs 5 or Rs 10.“ Shreya Naik, a D N Nagar resident said, “I will continue to travel by Metro even if there is further fare revision because it is better than waiting for bus or haggling with auto drivers.“ Agreed San tosh D'souza, an AndheriGhatkopar commuter, “It is worth the price because it offers punctual services and they have never been disrupted.“
However, the fare hike has put off some commuters. Ghatkopar resident Hitesh Jani said, “I will prefer to travel by suburban trains because they are cheaper.Over-crowding will be an issue but I can't afford to shell out Rs 500 extra per month after the hike.“
However, smart card sales dipped only marginally , the sharpest fall was witnessed in sales of tokens. The source said, “The dip is largely because fewer tokens were sold. Token users are not regular commuters. In fact regular commuters, who use smart cards, have continued to travel on the Metro as the fare hike is marginal considering the comfort and time savings vis-avis other modes of transport.“
Mumbai Metro One Private Ltd (MMOPL) was recently allowed to increase fares by the Bombay High Court, and the revised slabs of Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs 30 and Rs 40 (depending on the distance one travels) came into effect from January 9.
On weekdays, the 12kmlong corridor carries 3 lakh passengers daily. The overall average, when weekend figures are also taken into account, was around 2.75 lakh commuters before the fare hike came into effect.
An MMOPL spokesperson said, “A very marginal difference was witnessed in ridership on Monday . It is too early to comment on the reason for the decrease. It requires around a week or two week to identify a trend for the same.“
Another MMOPL source said that there would not be any cause for concern even if there is a drop of 10,000 commuters per day . He explained, “If we consider average fares of Rs 25 in the band of Rs 10 to Rs 40, the revenue loss is around Rs 2.5 lakh per day , which is negligible.“
A Metro official said, “We have fixed the fare on the assumption that ridership will not be affected and we are in fact confident that it will increase as the days pass by .“ Regular commuters said the Metro was as crowded on Monday as on days before the hike. Andheri commuter Arpit Singh said, “The rush in the train at 10.15am was like any other day . I don't think people mind paying an extra Rs 5 or Rs 10.“ Shreya Naik, a D N Nagar resident said, “I will continue to travel by Metro even if there is further fare revision because it is better than waiting for bus or haggling with auto drivers.“ Agreed San tosh D'souza, an AndheriGhatkopar commuter, “It is worth the price because it offers punctual services and they have never been disrupted.“
However, the fare hike has put off some commuters. Ghatkopar resident Hitesh Jani said, “I will prefer to travel by suburban trains because they are cheaper.Over-crowding will be an issue but I can't afford to shell out Rs 500 extra per month after the hike.“
No comments:
Post a Comment