East West Metro should have ferried 7 lakh passengers every day in 2025, according to a prediction made by the authorities. However, in reality, the Green Line has barely over two lakh passengers daily on average.

Concerned about not reaching even one-third of the anticipated passenger count, Metro Rail is undertaking a study to determine the cause of the low foot traffic.

A detailed project report in 2016 estimated 8.08 lakh passengers every day on the Green Line by 2025. The full link was supposed to have been ready in 2018. The projection was later revised to 7 lakh per day.

“We are aware of the low passenger count on the Green Line, which is worrying. The concerned department has been asked to conduct a study to ascertain the reasons for the lower-than-expected footfall,” Subhransu Sekhar Mishra, the Metro general manager, told this newspaper.

“Once the Orange Line (New Garia-Airport link) reaches Sector V, the passenger count will go up,” he said.

The entire 16.6km corridor between Sector V and Howrah Maidan was commissioned for commercial runs on August 23 this year.

The daily average passenger count has been hovering around 2.2 lakh per day, said a Metro official.

“For a long time, the Green Line was functional on two stretches — between Sector V and Sealdah and between Howrah Maidan and Esplanade. The combined passenger count back then was just around one lakh,” said a senior Metro official.

“The purpose of the Green Line was direct connectivity between Howrah and Salt Lake via a stretch under the Hooghly. A vital missing link was the stretch between Sealdah and Esplanade, which delayed the project for years because of multiple incidents of soil subsidence. It was understandable that two fragmented links were not what passengers wanted. But the low footfall even after the unification of the entire network is very surprising,” the official said.

East-West Metro construction began in 2009. Work was first delayed when settlers at Duttabad in Salt Lake held it up on a 365-metre overhead stretch. Work resumed after the government relocated them.

Next up was the state government’s reluctance to acquire land in Bowbazar in the face of opposition from businessmen. The route was changed, adding nearly 2km to the journey. A stretch in Bowbazar, between Sealdah and Esplanade, has experienced four incidents of water leakage and soil subsidence since 2019, delaying the project for years.

Finally, on August 23 this year, the 2.5km stretch between Esplanade and Sealdah was commissioned, thereby making the Green Line one unified corridor.

On a weekday, during rush hours, the journey by bus between Howrah and Salt Lake takes around 90 minutes. The Metro ride takes less than half the time. Metro authorities had expected a massive surge in the number of commuters, but it has not happened so far.

To start with, Metro officials had estimated well over 1.5 lakh passengers every day at Esplanade alone, where the Green Line meets the Blue Line. But the actual numbers have fallen well short of expectations, said sources.

“Since August 23, there has been a nearly 100 per cent rise in the total East-West Metro passenger count. From over 1 lakh, the daily count is not over 2 lakh. But we had expected much more,” said another official.

“Phoolbagan has recorded a 125% jump in the passenger count, followed by Howrah (115%) and Sealdah (105%),” he said.

A former official said that the service hours should be expanded to draw more people. Now, the first trains leave around 6.30am and the last trains around 9.45pm.

“The first trains can leave at 6am or 5.30am. The last trains can depart at 10.30pm or 11pm. The Green Line runs on advanced technology, unlike the Blue Line, where there is hardly any scope to extend the service hours. If the Green Line service timings are stretched, many more passengers on suburban trains can avail the Metro,” the retired official said.

The Orange Line, which aims to link New Garia and Airport and is now functional between New Garia and Beleghata, should be extended to Sector V by September 2026, said Metro officials.

The Orange Line will join the Green Line at Sector V.