BENGALURU: To enable Metro commuters go in for a single top-up on their smart cards for travel that would last an entire month, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has decided to double the storage value on them.
The “Varshik” card presently sold permits a maximum top-up value of `1,500 for a card, which is valid for one year. It provides a 15 per cent discount on the fare charged for a journey using Metro tokens.
A S Shankar, Executive Director, Operations and Maintenance, BMRCL, said, “We will shortly be permitting topping of the value on Varshik to `3,000 when done at Metro stations using cash or card and `2,500 when the top-up is done online.” The move will be effected bearing in mind the expanded Metro network and the hike effected in the fares across the network, he added.
The existing storage value was introduced when Metro operations commenced on the first route between M G Road and Baiyappanahalli on October 20, 2011. “Our network has expanded vastly now with 43.2 km across the city being connected. With the hike in fares effected after the launch of the full Phase I of Metro in mid-2017, the maximum price of a ticket between two end points now costs `60. The same trip on Varshik card would only cost `51,” Shankar said.
Commuters who make use of Metro daily between the terminal points would need at least `2,500 on their cards each month. “To save Metro riders the effort of standing in long queues and top-up their cards twice a month, BMRCL has decided on this move,” the Executive Director added. Nearly 60 per cent of the daily average of 3.6 to 3.7 lakh Metro commuters prefer smart cards over tokens. Trains are run at a frequency of 3.5 minutes during peak hours presently and the ridership has breached the 4-lakh ridership mark quite a few times.