Hyderabadis have taken to the Metro train as fish to the water. The fact that the travel time on normally congested and busy corridors has come down by three-fourth has cheered the citizens and there was a marked improvement in the flow of road traffic.
like the first day, there was a massive rush of passengers on the day two on Thursday at all the stations with people making a bee line to get a taste of the ultra modern elevated Metrol train.
A record of sorts was created on day 1 as more than 2,00,000 people travelled on 30 kms long Miyapur-Kukatpally stretch on the very first day of its commercial operation as people lined up right from the wee hours bracing the morning chill to enjoy the Metro ride.
“Delighted that Hyderabadis have welcomed Hyderabad Metro in big way”, said the Telangana Urban Development and IT Minister K Taraka Rama Rao who first put the number of passengers on the first day at 1,00,000 but later corrected it to double it.
“I am told while day1 of Hyd Metro broke all records, on day 2 also we are noticing a surge”, he tweeted and directed the city police and officials of the government and HMR to stay on high alert and manage the crowd.
“Appeal to fellow Hyderabadis to be considerate to kids, elderly and other passengers. It is our Metro, our pride”, he said.
There was an air of jubilation at the Miyapur station as the passengers coming from long distances cheered. “The journey which used to take at least one hour and lot of difficulties was today over in just 15 minutes. It is incredible”, said M. Santosh, a private company employee.
For Jyotsna, a graduation student and her friend it was a historic moment. “Today our city has become a world class city. I am feeling so proud”, said the girl, who travelled form Mettuguda to Ameerpet.
Ordinary people went out of the way to make the day memorable some queueing up at Miyapur at 4 am to take the first train out at 6 am.
A couple – both working professionals- boarded the train just to give the “first day first show” experience to their 3 months old infant. Srikant and Pavani with their baby boarded the train at Habsiguda, close to their home to come to Ameerpet just to enjoy the moment.