MillenniumPost
Delhi

Fearful of fare hike, commuters mull switching to other means

NEW DELHI: A second Delhi Metro fare hike in a year has elicited strong reaction from commuters, with many crying that the fare hike will make riding the Metro becoming a 'costly affair' in Delhi-NCR. Meanwhile, people from the poorer strata said they will now have to switch to personal vehicles or commute through Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses, as the fares are significantly cheaper. Abhishek Kumar, a regular commuter says: "I regularly commute from Shastri Park to Gurgram to reach my office, which costs Rs 45. After the revision, it would be around Rs 55, which I pay on discounted price via smart card. To commute from my home to Shastri Park via bus would cost me around Rs 15. For the same journey, I used to pay Rs 80 on one side. And now, for the same journey, I will have to spend over Rs 100 for one side. It will effect my budget harshly." "After the fare hike, I will have to spend nearly Rs 250 for up and down as maximum. I am thinking of switching to a personal vehicle as it would cost me the same," said Rahul Puri, a manager at Samsung. He added that development of public transport in a welfare state does not means to raising money, but to provide feasible connectivity to commuter of any strata in affordable price. Meanwhile, even secondary transport providers, who connect to Metro stations, are now alarmed and could soon hike their own fares. Meanewhile, residents in affluents areas like Malviya Nagar, Model Town and Vasundhara Enclave say they would not have had any trouble paying extra, if the Metro had addressed issues such as last-mile connectivity.
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