MUMBAI: After nearly ten years of waiting, Mumbai’s inaugural underground Metro line commenced operations with great enthusiasm on Thursday, recording 146,087 commuters by 9 PM. The complete 33.5 km Aqua Line (Metro 3) connecting Aarey to Cuffe Parade has successfully linked south Mumbai with the suburbs through an underground rail system. The ridership count by early afternoon was nearly equivalent to the average daily ridership of approximately 60,000 that was noted when only the Aarey-JVLR to Acharya Atre Chowk segment was in service—and that was for an entire day. This significant increase indicates a robust demand for direct access to the business and government districts in south Mumbai. In contrast, on October 7, when Phase 1 (Aarey-JVLRBKC) was inaugurated, the ridership was considerably lower at 18,015, while it reached 32,791 on May 10 when Phase 2A (Aarey JVLR-Acharya Atre Chowk) was launched. With the final phase now operational, the Aqua Line has emerged as Mumbai’s first and the nation’s longest fully underground Metro corridor constructed in a single phase. Passenger traffic began to increase after 8:30 AM, with consistent crowds observed at Worli, Dadar, Vidhan Bhavan, CSMT, and Churchgate stations. Many commuters expressed that the new line allowed them to bypass lengthy waits at BEST bus stops and evade costly taxi fares to the island city. For example, BEST buses departing from Mantralaya operated with noticeably fewer passengers. At the primary bus stop outside CSMT station, the crowd was nearly halved compared to typical days, and three buses were seen lined up waiting for passengers at 11 AM. A few taxi drivers at the stand outside CSMT were observed approaching travelers, urging them to consider shared rides to Fountain and Nariman Point.
