CHENNAI: Chennai Metro Rail will set up electric vehicle (EV) charging facility at four metro stations in partnership with Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. The electric bike charging stations will be set up by at Tirumangalam, St Thomas Mount, Alandur and Koyambedu Metro Stations.
Chennai Metro is also planning to launch e-bikes and is in talks with a Bengaluru-based company, Metro Rail sources said. It is learnt that the bikes scheme would be more or less akin to that introduced by Bengaluru Metro.
In Bengaluru, the e-bike is keyless and could be accessed through an app which sends OTP to the mobile phone. This also comes in the wake of National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) to achieve national fuel security by promoting hybrid and electric vehicles in the country
Meanwhile, car parking woes in Chennai Egmore is being addressed by Chennai Metro. The Egmore Metro station has space to accommodate 100 cars unlike Southern Railway’s car parking space, which is small. “For a per hour parking of a car in its facility, Metro is charging `50,” a Chennai Metro spokesman said.
Meanwhile, Chennai Metro’s ridership has increased after the opening of Nehru Park to Chennai Central Stretch and Little Mount to AG-DMS stretch. The Metro is currently running 25 trains during office hours from 8 am to 10.30 am and from 5 pm to 8.30 pm. During non-peak hours, it operates 20 trains and has two trains as standby.