BENGALURU: Thousands of commuters who arrived at Metro stations to catch the train were surprised to see the doors shut. The flash strike of Metro employees between 5am and 11.40am on Friday left the commuters, mainly office-goers, stranded at metro stations.
Many of them had to depend on BMTC, app-based taxis like Ola and Uber as well as autorickshaws to reach their destinations due to the unexpected stoppage of Metro services. “I was hoping to take the Metro from Yeshwanthpur Railway Station to Soap Factory but I had to book an Uber because of the strike,” said K Balaji, a commuter.
Some commuters said cabs were also unavailable for a few hours in the morning because of the unusual demand as there was no prior intimation about the strike.
There were complaints of autorickshaw drivers fleecing customers. Some commuters vented out their anger in social media. “Auto cost- `300, time-2.5hrs; Uber cost- `200, time - 2hrs; Metro cost- `45, time - 45mins; Metro (in bandh) #NammaMetro”, a tweet read.
While the strike has resulted in traffic congestion in several stretches in the city, BMTC said the ridership along the metro corridors increased during morning hours. Many commuters also complained that they reported late to work due to the strike as they were stuck in traffic for long hours.
Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) R Hithendra said some stretches along the Metro rail corridor, particularly Mysuru Road, witnessed traffic congestion because of the strike.
Khadeer, a netizen, tweeted: “Nvr expected Metro cud go on strike so soon. Lot of hardship to ppl caught unaware.Hope its resolved n restored soon.Lifeline f bengaluru (sic)”.