Opening of Metro Yellow line is still a distant dream; BMRCL suggests wearing masks on Metro trains

BENGALURU: It seems like the much-awaited inauguration of the Yellow Line metro is still a faraway dream. Despite all preparations being in place, the inauguration has been delayed again, leaving a lot of passengers disappointed, especially those eagerly waiting for it.

The question of when the Yellow Line metro will be inaugurated remains unanswered, with the deadline being pushed farther each time. After overcoming several hurdles, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) was gearing up to inaugurate the Yellow Line metro. The third testing has been completed and the Railway Board has given its approval for the Metro rolling stock. The Metro Rail Safety Commissioner was also expected to conduct a final inspection soon.

However, the inauguration has been delayed again due to signalling issues. According to Yashawant Chauhan, Metro Public Relations Officer, Siemens India Limited, the company responsible for the signalling work, recently conducted a review of the signaling system and found errors in the software data setup. As a result, approval for operations has not been granted anytime soon.

He further added, “The Yellow Line metro twill be fully controlled by software and even a small error could compromise the system’s safety. It may take around a month to resolve this issue. After that, the Central Railway Safety Committee will visit and conduct an inspection, which may take another two months. Therefore, the line is likely to be opened by the end of July.”

A lakh of passengers travel daily on Bengaluru Namma Metro. With the ongoing Covid threat, the Metro has become a potential hotspot. Since all the trains have AC coaches, people are worried and many have already started wearing masks while travelling. The vulnerable community like pregnant women, seniors and those with health issues are travelling without masks.

Considering this, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has suggested people wear masks while traveling for their own health and the health of fellow passengers. Since the government hasn’t imposed any strict rules yet, BMRCL has given this advice for the well-being of passengers rather than enforcing a strict rule.