KOCHI: Kochi Metro recorded a marginal increase in ridership in financial year 2025-26, carrying 13.75 lakh more passengers than it did in the previous year. The metro carried around 3.68 crore passengers, compared to the 3.55 crore it registered in 2024-25. This is a year-on-year increase of 3.9%.
A month-wise analysis shows that growth was distributed rather than concentrated in isolated spikes. In the first quarter, that is April to June, ridership rose from 85.7 lakh in FY25 to 88.4 lakh in FY26. This upward trend continued in the second quarter (July to September) as well, with figures increasing from 91.3 lakh to 95.1 lakh.
The October to December period remained the strongest in both years. Ridership for these three months rose from 94 lakh in FY 2024-25 to 97 lakh in the current fiscal, with December alone recording over 32 lakh passengers in both years.
This sustained peak is on account of December being peppered with several arts and cultural events, most notably the Kochi Muziris Biennale, which coincides with the school holidays. These usually draw a lot of tourists, both foreign and domestic, to the city.
In the final quarter (January-March), ridership increased from 83.5 lakh to 87.7 lakh.
The rise was more pronounced in March, which recorded over 28 lakh passengers, compared to 25.7 lakh the same month in 2025.
A key operational change during this period is widely credited with this jump. The metro services were extended till 11 pm from February 15. While February ridership stood at 26.8 lakh, largely in line with the previous year’s 26.2 lakh, March showed a clearer increase following the full implementation of the revised schedule.
The Kochi Metro feeder bus service, introduced in January 2025, also completed its first full year of operations during this financial year. The service carried over 14 lakh passengers, operating across six routes. This service, which improved last-mile connectivity and expanded the metro network’s reach, is also credited with boosting the FY 2025-26 ridership numbers.
In addition, fare incentives — such as the one implemented on January 26, which offered a 10 to 15 per cent discount on mobile QR tickets and other such special packages — also helped commuters embrace the metro line, improving ridership.
Overall, the data indicate that the ridership growth has remained incremental, with consistent increases across most months.
With more metro corridors on the anvil, the numbers are certain to go exponential in the coming years.