India's first Water Metro service records footfall of over 6,500 passengers on day 1

Every 15 minutes, the 'Water Metro' operated between the High Court and Vypin terminals.  

Kochi: India's first Water Metro service which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, witnessed 6,559 passengers on Wednesday. The service has received a warm response from the public making their life easier.

The commercial operations opened at 7 am and ended at 8 pm on Wednesday. Every 15 minutes, the 'Water Metro' operated between the High Court and Vypin terminals.

On the first day itself, a large crowd rushed into the terminal area to experience the Water Metro journey, and hundreds of people could be seen waiting in long lines to board the boats.

On the water metro, the minimum and maximum ticket prices are 20 and 40 rupees, respectively. On the water metro, the minimum and maximum ticket prices are 20 and 40 rupees, respectively. High court-Vypin will cost Rs. 20, while Vyttila-Kakkanad would cost Rs 30. Ticket prices range from Rs 180 for a weekly pass to Rs 600 for a monthly pass to Rs 1500 for a quarterly pass. 

The Water Metro project aims to facilitate access to business areas on the mainland for urban homes located along the Kochi lakeshore while simultaneously reducing traffic congestion and pollution in the city. In order to increase passengers, the Kochi Water Metro project plans to frequently launch new, energy-efficient, environmentally friendly, and safe boats with low wake and draft characteristics.

The Kochi water metro project involves the construction of 15 routes, which will connect 10 islands along a network of 78 km-long routes, using a fleet of 78 quick, electrically-propelled hybrid ferries that will stop at 38 jetties. The water metro is anticipated to benefit more than 100,000 island people.

The Water Metro project comprises fifteen identified routes connecting 38 jetties across 10 island communities and 2 boatyards. The total length of the line lengths of these 15 routes is 76.2 km.