Mumbai Metro Line 3 records nearly 1.5 lakh riders till 9 pm

The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation MMRC on Thursday evening said that a total of 146087 passengers travelled on the Aarey JVLR to Cuffe Parade route of Mumbai Metro Line 3 by 9 pm officials saidThe services on the line will continue to operate until 1030 pm they saidThe newly inaugurated Phase 2B witnessed high footfall on day 1 of its opening for the publicOn day 1 the Vidhan Bhavan Metro station was also closed for sometime due to overcrowding The station was opened after a pause for a few minutes though the crowd remained and was eventually accommodatedAn official statement said During the evening peak hours passenger turnout was exceptionally high at Vidhan Bhavan station To ensure smooth crowd movement and maintain safety one of the seven entry gates at a station was temporarily closed for approximately 10 minutes The situation was promptly managed by our onground staff and security teamsPrime Minister Narendra Modi had on Wednesday virtually inaugurated the final phase of Mumbai Metro Line 3 and said that connectivity is essential for cityrsquos a growthPM Modi had also praised the opening of Phase 2B of Mumbai Metro Line 3 calling it a big step forward for the citys infrastructure and public transportIn a post on X PM Modi said that this new metro stretch would greatly help improve connectivity and quality of life in Mumbai He added that metro systems are important for a cityrsquos growth and this project would benefit the whole Mumbai Metropolitan Region MMRPM Modi also said the project would help boost business ease traffic and improve lsquoEase of Livingrsquo for the cityrsquos people The final phase connects Cuffe Parade to Acharya Atre Chowk covering important areas like Marine Drive Fort and Nariman PointThe new Metro Phase 2B cost around Rs 12200 crore and completes the full Mumbai Metro Line3 Aqua Line which is now 335 km long with 27 underground stations built at a total cost of over Rs 37270 croreIt is Mumbairsquos first fully underground metro line and will serve around 13 lakh passengers daily The line is designed to connect easily with railways airports and other metro lines making travel smoother and reducing congestionMumbai Metro Line 3 spanning 335 km from Cuffe Parade to Aarey JVLR with 27 stations will cater to 13 lakh passengers daily The final Phase 2B of the project will provide seamless connectivity to South Mumbairsquos heritage and cultural districts such as Fort Kala Ghoda and Marine Drive along with direct access to key administrative and financial hubs including the Bombay High Court Mantralaya Reserve Bank of India RBI Bombay Stock Exchange BSE and Nariman PointMumbai Metro Line3 has been designed to ensure efficient integration with other modes of transport in Mumbai including railways airports other metro lines and monorail services thereby enhancing lastmile connectivity and reducing congestion across the metropolitan regionwith inputs from Rajendra B Aklekar