Now, Metro ride to Noida will take 30 minutes less

New Delhi: From college students to government officials and businessman, commuters have started feeling a sigh of relief after the commencement of the Magenta Line, with some saying they were planning to switch to Delhi Metro as Okhla barrage traffic makes their life vulnerable.

Aroma Bhargava, 19, a Delhi University student, is excited with the new connectivity, which came into effect on Monday. "My college is in South Campus. I travel from Moolchand to Race Course, traversing through Violet and Yellow lines. When I heard about the Magenta Line, my immediate reaction was like -'this line is boon for the commuters, who reside in Noida," she said. Being a student, Bhargava said, time management is crucial and commuting through this line will help me saving lots of time."

Fifty-year-old Sunil Bhatia, a resident of Noida, works at a government institution near Patel Chowk Metro Station in Delhi, from where he takes the train on his way back home. Laboriously moving towards the queue at the entry gate at the metro station, Bhatia said he has travelled on the Delhi Metro ever since it extended to the Noida.

"Earlier,I had to take a train from Noida to switch Metro at Mandi House to go to South Delhi. Now, the journey that took 52 minutes can now be completed in just 19 minutes," Bhatia said. He further added that Noida and Faridabad have also come closer and those travelling to Faridabad will be able to change trains at Kalkaji Mandir and go directly to Faridabad, saving them a lot of time.

Meanwhile, a spiritual and wanderlust person, Prayag Joshi, feels excited with the opening of this Line 8, as this line eases connectivity to Kalka Ji temple, Lotus temple and Okhla Bird Century. "South Delhi is prime hub of all the government functionary and heritage output," said a commuter.

Raghvendra Jadaun, another commuter working with a private firm said, "I was eagerly waiting for this Line for being operational as travelling through the road is the worst nightmare at the peak hours. Okhla barrage traffic is worse during the peak hours, had to stuck in traffic for hours and since many years it has been terrifying to cross the barrage, sometime it leads to a kilometer traffic jam. But with the operation of Magenta Line, I can reach my home in just half an hour which is really exciting."

"With this line, footfall at Noida's Botanical Garden station is expected to increase three times – from 30,000 to 97,000 passengers daily," said a DMRC official. He added that once fully operational by March next, the Magenta Line (Botanical Garden-Janakpuri West) will ferry approximately 3.60 lakh commuters every day, Delhi Metro estimates. He further said that once this line opens completely, commuters from Noida to Gurgaon would be able to bypass the crowded Rajiv Chowk station and change trains at Hauz Khas station to reach Gurgaon.