Kochi: Kochi Metro ridership crossed ten crore, a significant milestone in its sixth year of operation. The total number of passengers who have travelled on the metro since its launch on June 19, 2017, until December 29 of this year is 10,33,59,586.
The passenger count surpassed five crore on December 21, 2021, and reached 6 crore on July 14, 2022. In the past one and a half years, a total of four crore individuals relied on Kochi Metro for their travels.
The average daily passenger count in January 2023 was 79,130, which increased to 94,000 in December.
On October 21 this year, 13,21,161 individuals travelled on the metro, marking the largest number of passengers to date and the highest revenue earned through ticket sales. Throughout this year, the daily passenger count also surpassed one lakh on 40 days.
Loknath Behera, the Managing Director of KMRL (Kochi Metro Rail Limited), highlighted a significant increase in the number of passengers in 2023. The growth followed KMRL's efforts to attract the public by introducing various programmes. The initiative included travel passes and offers, especially for students.
KMRL anticipates that with the extension of the metro service to the Tripunithura station upon the completion of the civil work, the daily average number of passengers will cross one lakh.