BENGALURU: Namma Metro services were disrupted for around half an hour on Monday morning between 10:18 am and 10:50 am due to a problem at the Baiyappanahalli station which is the terminating halt on the Purple line for East Bengaluru. A signalling failure at the station led to a train being stranded short of the station and 158 passengers had to be evacuated via the walkway installed for the purpose.
According to officials, the passengers were in the train at the time the fault occurred around 10:18 AM and were subsequently evacuated around 10:35 AM. The failure also led to 6 round trips on the Purple line, between Mysuru Road and Baiyappanahalli, being cancelled while three more trains were terminated at SV Road and Indiranagar stations as they could not reach Baiyappanahalli.
While commuters were left stranded at most of the Purple Line stations, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) resorted to running 3 short loop trains between Indiranagar and Mysuru Road and Indiranagar and Kempegowda Metro Station. Around 16 passengers claimed a refund as services were affected till around 10:50 AM when operations resumed normally.
"The train stopped just outside the Baiyappanahalli station and we waited inside the train for some time before we were told to get out on to the walkway and head towards the station. Everyone walked single file for a few metres. This was the first time I was stuck in a Metro and the experience was frightening, " said Rohini Rao, one of the passengers who was evacuated by BMRCL staff.
The technical problem did not allow trains headed towards Baiyappanahalli from the city to turn back as a result of which trains had to turn back at Indiranagar. This led to a cascading effect as trains were delayed at all Purple line stations.
According to Mahendra Jain, Managing Director, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), the problem was with the 'cross over' section of the Baiyappanahalli station, which trains use to turn back after reaching the last stop. "The problem has been fixed presently and operations are back to normal. The signal failure is being investigated thoroughly," he said.