Pune Metro: Moving Fast, Yet Progressing Slowly

Pune Metro, with it's newly extended corridor, was supposed to be a game changer for the comprehensive mobility plan of Pune city. However, is this the case?

After its inauguration by the hands of PM Narendra Modi in 2016, the project was expected to be completed in the year 2020 but faced a major setback due to the Covid- 19 pandemic, limiting the pace of progress.

Proposed Pune metro plan of phase - 1

In August 2023, Pune Metro extended the corridor from Garware College to Ruby Hall and Phugewadi to Civil Court, ultimately extending the total route to 33 km.

Happy with the extended route of Maha Metro, Sahil, a student of Garware College and now a regular metro commuter, said, "I'm happy that I can travel from Ruby Hall to Garware College without any delay. Commuting via PMT buses was a hectic task, and it used to take me 45 minutes to travel. Now, it takes me only 20 minutes!"

Commuters , mainly College students are prioritising metro service for daily travel

During the Ganesh festival, Pune Metro extended its operating hours, which resulted in a new high in terms of daily footfall, but Maha Metro discontinued extended commuting hours after the festival. While Pune Metro is attracting temporary passengers out of sheer curiosity, it has not been successful in converting them into regular commuters. Currently operating between 7 AM to 10 PM, with a metro train every 10 to 15 minutes, the daily footfall is now decreasing in numbers.

A nearly empty platform of a metro station during peak hours 

"I work in a night shift, so I can only use metro service to travel to my work destination during the afternoon. Many of my coworkers working during the second shift can't use Metro service as the service shuts down too early at night," one of the commuters said.

Pune Metro is an integral part of the comprehensive mobility plan, which also includes services like BRT+, cycle stations, and footpaths. It's supposed to ease the congestion in the current transport scenario of the city.

"I've been hearing about Pune Metro since 2005-06, and yet it took almost 15-16 years to see a metro running around Pune Shahar. Since the requirements have changed from what they were in 2006, I doubt if the current (operational ) metro infrastructure is enough." a daily passenger said.

People living in areas like Sinhgad Road, Nagar Road, Katraj, and Ramwadi are still waiting for Metro connectivity. With the first phase still under development, the second phase's development is expected to start next year. Metro trains are a good option to ease the traffic situation in the city, but despite being a fast commuting option, the slow pace of development is a major issue that should be addressed as well.

-Mansoor Alamgir Mulla

(Roll no 15)