President Inaugurates Final Section of Bangalore Metro’s Phase 1

India’s President Pranab Mukherjee just inaugurated the final 12 km Sampige Road – Yelachenahalli section of Bangalore Metro’s 24.20 km Green Line. This 6th and final piece of the 42.30 km Phase 1 is a game-changer for the network which till now had 2 fragmented lines running independent operations.

The event at Vidhana Soudha’s grounds barely lasted 40 minutes and ended with a train getting flagged off from Sampige Road towards Yelachenahalli, amidst cheers, to mark the completion of the city’s Phase 1 project a decade after work on its first section commenced in April 2007.

The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd has not yet updated their online fare chart and it appears that fare prices will go up by 10% to cut operational losses. The BMRCL’s fleet consists of 50 3-coach BEML trains, and after transferring 2 trains over to the Purple Line, it’ll operate 27 on the 24.20 km Green Line and the rest 23 on the 18.10 km Purple Line.

This final section of Phase 1 will open its doors to users on June 18 (Sunday) at 4 pm and add new platforms at Kempegowda Majestic Station and 10 new stations at Chickpet, KR Market, National College, Lalbagh, South End Circle, Jayanagar, RV Road, Banashankari, JP Nagar, Yelachenahalli (erst. Puttenahalli)

Final 12 km section of the Green Line – view Bangalore Metro map & information

Images:

Flagged off – Photo Copyright: Rashtrapati Bhawan

Photo Copyright: DULT

Unveiling the inaugural plaque – Photo Copyright: Rashtrapati Bhawan

Photo Copyright: M Venkaiah Naidu

Photo Copyright: Deccan Herald

Photo Copyright: Deccan Herald

Photo Copyright: Deccan Herald

Photo Copyright: lkatheeq

Leaving Banashankari Station – Photo Copyright: Vishweshwar Bhat

Photo Copyright: Vishweshwar Bhat

Photo Copyright: Vishweshwar Bhat

Leaving JP Nagar Station – Photo Copyright: Vishweshwar Bhat

Video:

Commercial operations are scheduled to begin on June 18 (Sunday) after 4 pm. Here’s a press release from the BMRCL which lists out the system’s frequency and train operation plan –

For more updates, check out the Bangalore section of The Metro Rail Guy!

– TMRG

written by

Global traveler who prefers mass rapid transit

16 Responses to "President Inaugurates Final Section of Bangalore Metro’s Phase 1"

  1. vijay says:

    Congratulations to all. I’m am just waiting for any announcement regarding Chickpet & KR stations which are , till this time in clear state of non-completion.

    Reply
    • Bhanu says:

      That’s surprising. Might as well have waited till July first week to properly complete all the work and then start. It’s not like today was the original deadline and the project would have been tagged “delayed” had they missed it. 😐

      Reply
  2. Abhijit Seal says:

    Information Section should get updated as 42Km operational now.

    Reply
  3. shrikanth says:

    A big step for the metro and the city. Makes life so much easier. I guess Lalbagh will become more crowded now as early morning joggers will take max benefit from this. And the officegoers can really shorten their time and get to spend more quality time with their families. Businesses too benefit as people are willing to go more far out and shop. Landlords will have more occupancy in the suburbs thanks to improved connectivity. Guess the only loser is gonna be BMTC such as happened already around vijaynagar/mysore road.

    Reply
    • Arun says:

      I hope BMTC plays much bigger role in last mile connectivity. May be they need to operate smaller size buses to connect interiors with station.

      Reply
  4. Sadananda says:

    Does it stop at Central Station?

    Reply
    • TMRG says:

      You mean Bangalore City Junction Station? Not the Green Line, but the Purple Line does. You’d find it better getting off at Majestic Interchange Station though as the Purple Line’s station is not connected with the railway station.

      Reply
  5. krishnan says:

    BMRC sets ball rolling on Metro link to airport -Jun 22, 2017
    —————————————————————–

    http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/bmrc-sets-ball-rolling-on-metro-link-to-airport/articleshow/59262506.cms

    Reply
  6. partha b says:

    Please get some additional coaches immediately and increase number of coaches as only 3 coaches per train is grossly inadequate. In rush hours terrible crowd at majestic already and it is looking like a bus station with metro rail employees shouting to call passengers and forcing them to board overcrowded compartments. The service is good but uncomfortable due to jam packed coaches.

    Reply
  7. Soumith says:

    Hi when will the construction of yellow line start

    Reply
  8. Vijay says:

    Its a surprise that in these times, BMRC has opted not to use automatic glass wall for safety of passengers & instead relies on guards who have to keep a continuos vigil & keep whistling to control the huge crowd. A small expense for passenger safety would not have made a big difference in the entire budget of the station. Are they just waiting for an accident to happen ?

    Reply
    • TMRG says:

      Installation of platform screen doors is actually quite costly. Kochi Metro planned to have them, but dropped the idea for this very reason.

      To give you an idea, DMRC has spent Rs. 541 crores across 3 contracts to have PSDs installed on the new Pink and Magenta lines’ 63 stations. Looking at that figure, I’d rather have the lines extended to serve more regions.

      Reply

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