Bengaluru metro chaos due to technical glitch

Bengaluru

A major disruption in Namma Metro operations during the Monday morning rush hour left thousands of commuters stranded across key stations, particularly at Majestic, the city’s central interchange for the Purple and Green Lines.

As the week began, office-goers, students, and traders returning from the weekend break faced severe inconvenience due to unexpected delays in metro services. Commuters at Majestic station, one of the busiest transit points in the city, experienced overcrowding to the extent that movement within the station became nearly impossible.

The disruption was caused by a signalling issue on the Purple Line, confirmed a Metro communications officer to Vijaya Karnataka Web. “Due to a signal glitch, trains were delayed by about three minutes during peak hours. However, the issue has now been resolved and operations are returning to normal,” the official stated.

Despite the official assurance, reports from other stations including Attiguppe and MG Road revealed that trains remained stationary for prolonged periods. Passengers took to social media to vent their frustration. Some pointed out the absence of real-time arrival/departure displays at Purple Line stations, compounding confusion and crowding.

A commuter from Whitefield reported that the station saw an overwhelming influx of passengers, while another, Vardhan Shenoy, tweeted about delays on the Silk Institute-bound Green Line, urging authorities to increase train frequency.

The Bengaluru Metro is currently undergoing expansion and integration across multiple districts with a proposed 197 km network. However, incidents like today highlight the need for enhanced contingency planning and real-time commuter updates, especially during critical hours.