Metro ridership fall not linked to fare: Hardeep Singh Puri

New Delhi: A day after an RTI reply revealed that the Delhi Metro lost over 3 lakh commuters daily post the fare hike in October, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday claimed that the dip in the Delhi Metro’s ridership cannot be linked to the fare hike effected in October, which it said was necessary for maintaining “efficiency”.

The Union minister of state (Independent Charge) for housing and urban affairs told reporters here that despite the increase, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s (DMRC) fares were among the “lowest in the world” and the “lowest in India”.

“The fare hike has not led to a decline in metro ridership. For example, in 2016, there was a ridership dip by 1.3 lakh from September to October when there was no change in fares,” he said.

Mr Puri said that every year, there are a few months that see an increase in ridership and a decline is observed in the others. The ridership after the fare revision for many days was actually higher than the ridership on some days before it was revised, he said.

“On previous occasions of fare increase, there were at times temporary dip in ridership which recovered shortly. Ridership in November has shown a rising trend,” the Union minister said.

However, according to the DMRC’s records, the fall in October was the steepest ever. The metro has been logging a daily average ridership between 27 lakh and 28 lakh over the recent years, with minor variations.

Till May, the Delhi Metro transported around 28 lakh passengers daily. But, after the first phase of the hike in May, it lost nearly 1.5 lakh passengers per day in June as the ridership dropped to 25.7 lakh. However, the ridership picked up from around July.

In July and August, the Delhi Metro witnessed a daily average ridership of 26.6 lakh and 27 lakh respectively. Last year, in July, August and September, the Metro’s daily average ridership figures were 26.9 lakh, 28.5 lakh and 28.4 lakh, respectively, reflecting a trajectory of sustained growth.

Seeking to defend the fare hike, Mr Puri said that Metro fares are neither fixed by the Centre or the Delhi government, both of which hold equal stakes in the DMRC, and pointed out that it was after a gap of eight years that the fares had been hiked.

Fare Fixation Committee, a statutory body created under an Act of Parliament, determines the metro fares, he said.