Pune Metro Lines 1 & 2 only at 40% ridership after 2 years of operation

Even after two years of operation, Pune Metro Lines 1 and 2 (Swargate to PCMC and Vanaz to Ramwadi) have achieved barely 40 per cent of the ridership estimated in the Detailed Project Report (DPR), according to figures available on the Pune Metro website.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the long-delayed Line 3 (Pink Line) of Pune Metro on Tuesday, connecting the District Court in the centre of the city with the IT hub in Hinjewadi-Maan.

Two years ago, in September 2024, Modi had inaugurated the Swargate Metro station, making Line 1 and 2 of Pune Metro fully operational, barring a couple of intermediate stations.

The DPR had estimated a total ridership of 6.09 lakh per day for the first two lines combined for the year 2021. However even in October 2026, the daily average ridership stood at just 2.36 lakh per day.

A year ago in October 2025, the daily average ridership stood at 1.91 lakh, while in October 2024 the number stood at 1.55 lakh. This shows that even though there has been a steady increase in Metro ridership over the past two years, the increase has not been enough to bring the numbers close to the 2021 estimate.

The DPR figures are important because the investment in a huge infrastructure project like a Metro is made based on questions like how many private vehicles the project will be able to get off the roads. If the numbers estimated in the DPR are not met, it means that the resulting traffic reduction and carbon saving will not be at the expected level.

Ranjit Gadgil, programme director at NGO Parisar and a public transport expert, told The Indian Express that while Lines 1 and 2 had achieved only 2.36 lakh ridership, the ridership of Pune’s bus service PMPML was more than 11.2 lakh daily. This is despite a decrease of 70,000 daily ridership since 2024.

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Despite this, the PMPML is neglected with frequent transfers of Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) and fleet number stagnant at less than 2,000 buses since the last six years at least.

Gadgil remarked, “We cannot think of PMPML being a ‘feeder’ for Metro, instead they should complement one another. Instead of only focusing on Metro, there has to be an integrated vision for public transport — both Metro and PMPML, as well as improvements in walking and cycling, if we want to reduce private vehicle dependence and thus congestion and air pollution.”

Tanzeel Allapur, programme associate at Parisar, recently authored a report on the last mile gap in Pune Metro based on interviews of 150 commuters and 19 autorickshaw drivers.

She said, “I think Pune Metro has a lot of untapped potential. But expanding the Metro network alone is not going to be enough. The administration will need to make it easier to reach the Metro and also think about how affordable it is. Our research found that for nearly half of Metro commuters, the cost of first- and last-mile travel is as much as their Metro fare or even more. This defeats the purpose of having an affordable public transport system. Ultimately, the cost and convenience of the entire journey will be the main catalyst that nudges Punekars to leave their private vehicles at home.”

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Shravan Hardikar, the Managing Director of Maha Metro, the government agency that runs Line 1 and 2, could not be reached for a comment.