Amid rising public discontent over steep fare hikes, Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah has instructed the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) managing director (MD), Maheshwar Rao, to review the revised fares on certain routes that are being deemed excessive. The directive came after reports surfaced that commuters are facing fare hikes of over 100% on certain routes, prompting widespread criticism, officials aware of the matter said on Thursday.
“The way Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) has implemented the Namma Metro fare revision has led to anomalies, with fares more than doubling in certain sections,” the Chief Minister said in a statement on X on Thursday. He added, “I have asked the MD of BMRCL to urgently address these issues and reduce fares where increases are abnormal. Commuters’ interests must be safeguarded.”
On Thursday, BMRCL MD Rao clarified that while Metro fares would not be revised completely, adjustments would be made by merging certain fare stages. “There is a method for increasing the Metro fare. Similarly, the fare has been increased on the basis of the study and recommendation made by the fare fixing committee,” he said. The adjustments will be made stage by stage, particularly where fare hikes have been 45-50% or higher.
The fare hike sparked an immediate decline in Metro ridership, with many commuters expressing frustration over the sudden jump in travel costs. In response, BMRCL conducted an internal review of the pricing model, analysing the data over two days of deliberations.
“The Bangalore Metro Railway administration, to articulate the grievances of its commuters with regard to 100% or more fare increase in their daily commutation, deliberated for 2 days’ of day and night, have revisited the fare matrix to again study the recommendations of Fare Fixation Committee (FFC) and find out the best possible way within the ambit of FFC and without violating the statute to address the grievances of commuters,” the BMRCL said in a statement on Thursday evening.
The revised fare structure, which came into effect on February 9, marked the first increase since June 2017, averaging a 51.55% hike before discounts and around 45-46% after discounts. However, commuters have reported far greater surges. For instance, the fare for a 6.7-km ride between MG Road and Baiyappanahalli has surged from ₹20 to ₹40, though ideally, it should not have exceeded ₹30, commuters said.
Beyond the fare adjustments, passengers have also raised concerns over the increased minimum top-up requirement for smart cards, which has been raised from ₹50 to ₹90. A BMRCL official justified the move, explaining that passengers must have sufficient balance to cover the maximum fare to avoid recharging at exit stations. However, a frequent commuter questioned the logic behind this change, pointing out that the previous minimum balance was ₹50 when the maximum fare was ₹60.
According to BMRCL data, after the recent revision, the Metro fare system now includes 4,623 fare combinations, of which over 600 slabs saw an increase of 80-100%. The corporation is now working to rationalise these slabs, which could lead to a fare reduction of 15-35% in the affected sections.
However, Rao confirmed that commuters who have already paid the inflated fares over the past four days will not receive any refunds. “The fares at the stations where the fares have doubled will be merged. This will provide some relief to the passengers,” he said, adding that efforts will be made to merge slabs where fare hikes exceeded 60%.
The BMRCL statement added that these adjustments are being carried out without compromising the recommendations of the fare fixation committee, which operates under the Metro Railway (Operations & Maintenance) Act. “This is being done without diluting the integrity and spirit of the fare fixation committee as per the Metro Railway (Operations & Maintenance) Act, which makes the recommendations binding on the Metro Rail Administration,” the BMRCL said.