HYDERABAD: After witnessing a drastic fall in the number of riders during the pandemic, the L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Limited (LTMRHL) is slowly recuperating from the start of 2022.
According to official data, the LTMRH L was serving close to 2.4 lakh daily passengers after the end of the 2nd COVID wave in December 2021. However, with the rise of cases in the 3rd wave, the daily ridership in January dropped to around 1.6 lakh.
Sources say that the ridership rose to around 1.8 lakh at the beginning of February, and it’s expected to touch 2 lakh by the month-end. However, the authorities are not ready to divulge details about the losses incurred during the 3rd wave.
The officials said a majority of students and IT employees, who made up the major chunk of daily riders before the outbreak in 2020, are yet to return. Even as the situation is returning to normal, the IT employees, around 6 lakh in number, lakh are mostly working from home (WFH ).
"Another major reason is the increased preference for own vehicles by people in view of the pandemic. However, for the past few months, the numbers are improving and it is a positive sign. As educational institutions are now undertaking physical classes, we hope the Metro will regain its past glory," said an LTMRHL official.
Recently, Transport Minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar acknowledged that Hyderabad Metro is yet to recover financially from the impact of the pandemic.
He clarified that the LTMRHL remained under losses and had assured of all the support from the government. Prior to the pandemic, the ridership crossed 4 lakh daily passengers and in February 2020, it had touched 4.75 lakh.
The LTMRH L is adopting confidence-building measures to recover the lost patronage. In view of the pandemic, the Metro has ramped up the COVID-19 safety protocols and recently has introduced ozone-based sanitisation of its train coaches.
"Kickstarting the process, we have inducted three portable Ozycare Mobizone units to sanitise the coaches to build confidence among passengers for safe journeys during the ongoing pandemic. This includes rigorous monitoring and implementation of the safety guidelines," the officials informed.
Halted by third wave
The daily ridership reached a high of 2.4 lakh in December, but dropped due to the rise of cases in the third wave