Kolkata Metro: Services on East-West Line to increase to 100 from Thursday

Kolkata: Metro rail services in the East-West corridor will be increased to 100 per day from Thursday with the commencement of commercial services up to Sealdah, an official said.

While the day's first service from Sealdah to Sector 5 will start at 6.55 am, it will begin from 7 am in the other direction, Metro Railway spokesperson Ekalabya Chakraborty said on Wednesday.

The last service of the day will be at 9.35 pm from Sealdah, while it will be at 9.40 pm from Sector 5, he said.

No metro services will be available on the East-West corridor on Sundays, he said.

"Metro services from the newly-inaugurated Sealdah station will commence on Thursday. From that day, 100 daily services with 50 in each direction will be run between Sealdah and Sector 5 stations," Chakraborty said.

The frequency of the trains will be 20 minutes during non-peak hours and 15 minutes during rush hours.

The price of tickets from Sealdah to Sector 5 will be Rs 20, with Rs 10 being the minimum fare on the route.

With the inauguration of the Sealdah metro station alongside the railway station, which connects adjoining districts through suburban services, the authorities expect the passenger count to increase to around 35,000 daily.

The East-West Metro, which was being run between Phoolbagan and Sector 5 so far, has been suffering from low passenger patronage. Union minister Smriti Irani inaugurated the Seadah station on Monday.