The Hindu : Karnataka News : Metro fares will only be a little higher than bus

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Thursday, Jan 20, 2011
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Karnataka

Karnataka

Metro fares will only be a little higher than bus

Exact figures likely to be announced next week

GUESSTIMATE:The fares are likely to be 50 per cent higher than bus fares.

As the city's date with Namma Metro gets closer, the excitement of easy and speedy commute is overshadowed by apprehensions of high fares. However, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) has allayed such fears saying the fares would be about 1.5 times that of ordinary buses of the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC).

A BMRCL spokesperson said the fares are likely to be announced next week after the board's approval. “A committee has already discussed the fares for Reach 1. In all probability, the proposal will be given a formal approval next week,” he said. About the various reports doing the rounds on the tentative fares, he said it was not possible to comment before the formal approval.

Another vital aspect to making the metro a viable public transport would be providing efficient feeder service by increasing connectivity with stations. The BMTC is said to have already identified feeder bus routes around each station in Reach 1 based on the route map given by BMRCL.

Sources said a single ticketing system for the feeder service and metro ride is also being worked out for Reach 1 on an experimental basis.

This would reduce the inconvenience involving paying for both the bus and metro ride. A smart card system, similar to the monthly pass for buses, is also in the offing, apart from the regular tokens that will work as tickets.

The BMRC has received the detailed project report (DPR) of the proposed network under Phase Two, which will have extensions on all the four directions besides new lines. “We are awaiting the DPR for the Electronics City-Jayanagar and IIMB-Nagawara lines. We have already received DPR for extensions,” said BMRC Managing Director N. Sivasailam.

Phase Two costs

The second phase, with a connectivity of about 70 km, is estimated to cost Rs. 18,000 crore.

He also said that the Reach 3 of Namma Metro connecting Yeshwanthpur and Swastik stations would be ready for commercial run by March -April 2012.

K.C. DEEPIKA

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