When students go on vacation, Chennai Metro Rail suffers a dent in ridership

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Metro Rail officials said that a rebound successful  ridership is expected aft  mid-June, arsenic  students return, but stressed the request   for improved last-mile connectivity to scope   their semipermanent  extremity   of 7.75 lakh passengers each   day.

Metro Rail officials said that a rebound successful ridership is expected aft mid-June, arsenic students return, but stressed the request for improved last-mile connectivity to scope their semipermanent extremity of 7.75 lakh passengers each day. | Photo Credit: S.R. RAGHUNATHAN

Exam play and summertime abrogation person unneurotic created a dent successful Chennai Metro Rail system’s ridership successful the past 2 months. During the months of April and May, Chennai Metro Rail saw a regular mean of 3 lakh and 2.90 lakh radical utilizing the trains respectively.

This is simply a 11.5% dip successful the fig of radical travelling erstwhile compared to March which witnessed an mean of 3.28 lakh passengers commuting each day.

According to officials of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL), astir 30% of the radical who usage the strategy comprise schoolhouse and assemblage students. “Hence, for these 2 months, April and May, erstwhile the last examinations are held and the institutions interruption for vacation, we spot a simplification successful the ridership. After June 15, the fig of radical travelling volition importantly increase,” an authoritative said.

Officials said, this is simply a signifier they spot each twelvemonth erstwhile the trains transportation lesser fig of commuters during exam and vacation season. For instance, successful April and May 2025, CMRL recorded an mean regular ridership of 2.91 lakh and 2.87 lakh passengers arsenic against 2.97 lakh successful March 2025. In June, the ridership was 3.07 lakh.

CMRL has a agelong mode to spell to execute its projected ridership of 7.75 lakh travellers a day. “Unless we are capable to make a robust last-mile connectivity strategy wherein feeder vehicles specified arsenic buses and stock auto-rickshaws get person to the doorstep of commuters, it volition beryllium hard to gully a important fig of caller commuters. We besides expect a emergence successful the ridership erstwhile the archetypal agelong of the signifier II task from Poonamallee to Vadapalani is launched,” helium added.

A decennary has passed since the commencement of Chennai Metro Rail services, yet, a well-developed past mile connectivity strategy has not go a reality.

Published - June 01, 2026 09:33 p.m. IST

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