It seems Malayalees need to acquire a set of new habits as they get accustomed to the metro which offers service and comfort of international standards. Apparently, the metro etiquette is yet to sink in.
When the metro was opened to the public on Monday, many were seen throwing their used tickets carelessly on the platform and inside the station. Bus tickets and candy wraps were also thrown like this. Whenever a train stopped, at Aluva or Palarivattom, people at the platforms were rushing in to the coaches, blocking those getting off. This definitely is not the way to get in and off the coaches in a metro service. In every metro service in the world, people get in through either side of the door while people get off through the center. But on Monday, at the metro platforms in Kochi, it was total mayhem.
As it was the Kochi Metro’s first ride for the public, naturally there was a huge crowd. A few commuters who stood near the glass doors were trying to make a ‘mark’ by pressing their nose and lips on the glass. The announcements were hardly audible inside the metro trains as the people were happily chatting their time away.
Metro services around the world are generally quiet and people seldom speak loudly. It is meant to be a peaceful and silent journey. At the security gates, many were seen pressing or rubbing their tickets roughly on the sensors.
