Noida to resume metro services from September 7 as COVID-19 cases dip; Check guidelines

Noida: After the latest guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) under Unlock-4, the Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) is all prepared to resume its services on the Aqua Line for the public from September 7, 2020, onwards in a calibrated manner.

"Travelling in the Aqua Line will be a different experience for metro commuters as it will be mandatory for all passengers to wear masks and follow the rules of social distancing and other rules and regulations issued by the Government," read the official release.

According to the detailed SOP on Metros issued by the Ministery of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), the following precautionary measures have been taken by NMRC:

Operations and Frequency: 

- Initially, NMRC will run trains with reduced operational timings, ie, 7 AM to 11 PM in the morning and 5 PM to 9 PM in the evening with a frequency of 15 minutes on all days (Monday to Saturday). 

- On Sundays, the services will start from 8 AM to 11 AM and from 5 PM to 9 PM in the evenings. 

- The temperature inside the train will be maintained in the range of 24-30 degree celsius. 

- As of now, trains will stop at all the stations. However, based on the future notification, stations falling in COVID-19 containment zones will remain closed for commuters. 

Cleaning and Sanitisation of Trains and Stations:

- Intensive cleaning and sanitisation of station areas and the trains as a whole will be carried out daily during night hours. 

- Passengers contact area such as call buttons of lifts, AFC gates, handle belts of escalators and staircases, POS machines etc, at stations will be sanitized at regular intervals. 

- Passenger screening and other guidelines to be followed at the stations.

- Only the passengers with a face mask will be allowed.

- Every passenger will be screened by thermal sensors. 

- The limiting maximum temperature for travel permission will be 37.7-degree centigrade. 

- Passengers having "Aarogya Setu" app with green status will be allowed. 

- Persons entering NMRC premises will have to apply hand sanitizer after screening. 

- To ensure adequate social distance, markings for standing have been made at 1 m spacing at frisking zones, TOM counters and platforms. 

- Commuters should avoid touching the AFC Gates while scanning the QR tickets or Smart Cards. 

- On escalators, a gap of at least one step should be maintained between two passengers. 

- All lifts will be closed, however, in case of a request for senior citizens and physically challenged passengers, the lift will be made available on request. 

- Digital payments will be preferred. 

Guidelines for travelling inside the trains:

- Passengers shall maintain adequate social distance while travelling inside the trains. For this purpose, suitable markings have been made inside the coaches. 

- The crowd inside the train as well as at the station and platform will be monitored through CCTV from the Control Rooms. If more crowd is observed, entry at the station will be restricted. 

- Passengers will be advised to refrain from touching any surface inside the metro stations or trains. 

Entry and edit at stations:

- At the following stations only one gate will be kept open for entry and exit: Sector-101, Sector-81, NSEZ, Sector-83, Sector-137, Sector-142, Sector-143, Sector-144, Sector-145, Sector-146, Sector-147, Sector-148, Alpha-1, Delta-1 and GNIDA Office. 

- At following 6 stations, both entrance gates will be kept open for commuters: Sector-51, Sector-50, Sector-76, KP-II, Pari Chowk and Depot Station.

Notably, for information and awareness of the commuters, provision of suitable signages and announcements have been made available inside the stations and trains. 

Meanwhile, the PTI news agency reported that Gautam Buddh Nagar witnessed 142 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday that took the total count to 8,197.

The number of active cases jumped to 1,114, while the death count in the district stood at 45 with a mortality rate of 0.54 per cent. The recovery rate has reportedly dropped slightly to 85.86 per cent.