First-person account: A 43-km Metro ride from Bengaluru's tech hub Whitefield for Rs 60

Challaghatta Metro station

Formerly a quiet, farm-centric Anglo-Indian settlement – Whitefield – on the eastern periphery of Bengaluru has over the years transformed into an IT haven. Situated roughly 20 kilometres away from the city’s central business district, the neighbourhood has grown to have its own self-sustaining ecosystem of shopping and entertainment centres, residential societies, hospitals and educational institutions. Metro rail connectivity arrived in Whitefield amid much fanfare on March 25, 2023.

Since it came with a missing link between KR Pura and Byappanahalli it was only partial good news. On October 9 that broken link too came to life, allowing uninterrupted Metro passenger service on the entire Purple Line (Whitefield-Challaghatta) for the first time. At 5 am on October 9, Moneycontrol boarded the first train from Whitefield (Kadugodi) in the east to Challaghatta in the west, covering a total of 43.49 km.

Also read: Bengaluru: Citizen activism & online campaigns play key role in getting Whitefield-Challaghatta Metro line operational

4:35 am:  Whitefield station. The shutters at entry points are still down. Security personnel informed me that they’ll open up at 4:45 am. I notice that barely five other people are waiting to get in. A friendly Black Indie dog joins us in the wait outside.

4:45 am: I attempted to book a QR code ticket via WhatsApp. No luck. The message reads: "The bot is undergoing maintenance work due to the new line addition, and we shall be back soon." I decided to buy a token rather than use my smart card. A male staff at the ticket counter smiles when he hears the destination station's name. It’s the first train out of Whitefield that’s going to run all the way to the newly opened Challaghata station. And I’m presumably the first passenger who’s walked up to the counter. A Whitefield-Challaghata ticket costs Rs 60. A cab for that distance costs at least Rs 1,000 and comes with a travel time of around two hours.

4:55 am: I’m at Platform 1 and the display board flashes ‘KR Pura’ as the destination station. I check with the loco pilot who confirms the train will go all the way to Challaghatta. I board the train. It’s nearly empty.

5:06 am: Kadugodi Tree Park station. I run into Sreejith Pai, a techie and rail enthusiast, on the train. He was among those who wrote to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) on the delay in opening the Metro section despite Commissioner of Metro Railway Safety (CMRS) nod. He tells me his friend is boarding a train from the opposite end, Challaghatta, and they plan to get off at MG Road for tea to mark the first run of the fully operational Purple Line. "Normally, first trains run slow compared to the later ones, so others may pick up fast,” he said. For a city like Bengaluru that needs its public transport network to be robust and seamless, enthusiasts like Pai are such a blessing.

Sreejith met his friend at MG Road Metro station

5:09 am: Pattandur Agrahara. A couple – N Bhagya and KR Srinivas click selfies and video-call their daughter in Canada to share their excitement over taking the first Metro train on the completed Purple Line. "We've been waiting for this day for more than six years. Now visiting our relatives in Rajaji Nagar is going to be so much more convenient. We're headed to Indira Nagar for coffee," they smile.

5:21 am: Seetharam Palya. More passengers board.

5:35 am: KR Pura. It’s still dark outside and the train passes the hanging bridge.

5:38 am: Benniganahalli. The train reaches the spanking new station. A bunch of enthusiastic faces file in. Some of them are filming on their phones. Security guards are seen restricting them from taking pictures and videos. First-day jitters, one assumes.

5:43 am: After crossing the 550-tonne, 65-metre-long Open Web Girder above the railway track – the primary cause of the delay in work, the train enters Byappanahalli. The launching of OWG was one of the major hurdles of the section. The delay in receiving permission from South Western Railway (SWR) had stalled the work. Those waiting to board at the station look surprised. They’re used to getting on to an empty train since Byappanahalli was the earlier terminal station.

One of those cute boys responsible for delay in full line operations.
Time to forgive him, only Love today.
View from Metro train

Good Morning #OWG (Open Web Girder)

All it took was 2 minutes from Benniganahalli to BYP pic.twitter.com/bfhaKBaeyz

— Bangalore Metro Updates (@WF_Watcher) October 9, 2023

5:46 am: The train is almost packed, and picking pace. Display boards at en-route stations show Challaghatta and Whitefield instead of Kengeri and Byappanahalli – as origin and destination stations.

5:49 am: Indiranagar, known for its pubs and restaurants, will now be easily accessible to techies without the hassle of travelling through Old Madras Road.

5:55 am: MG Road, the commercial district of Bengaluru. It took just under an hour from Whitefield.

5:58 am: Cubbon Park. A few morning walkers in their track pants get off here.

6:00 am: Vidhana Soudha station, the epicentre of power and the seat of the state legislature of Karnataka. A group of students in cross-body bags line up near the door. A minute later, the train arrives at Central College station.

6:03 am: Majestic interchange station, where Purple and Green Lines meet, kiss and part ways. Passengers who’ve arrived by early morning long-distance buses and trains shuffle in, with their luggage. Some passengers alight here to head to Nagasandra-Silk Institute (north-south Metro corridor).

6:07 am: Daylight breaks over Magadi road.

6:11 am: Vijayanagar. Buildings look tightly packed, almost as if they share common walls.

6:17 am: Mysuru Road. The crowd thins out.

6:29 am: The train races past graffitis of javelin superstar Neeraj Chopra, the men’s hockey team at Kengeri bus terminal station to arrive at Kengeri.

6:33 am: Cutting through NICE Road, the train finally arrives at Challaghatta. Workers are peeling the plastic covering off the steel railings of stairs. The information centre is getting a final swab. Metro depot work is in progress outside the exit point and there’s a green safety net barricading it.

I took the next train back towards Whitefield.

The section between Byappanahalli and Benniganahalli at Tin Factory, which used to take over 30 minutes in travel time (one had to get off at Byappanahalli station, wait for feeder buses, get tickets, deal with traffic congestion), is now completed in just two minutes.  Those heading to Outer Ring Road can get off at KR Pura and take feeder buses to the tech corridor.

Also read: Through tech parks & tabebuia blossoms: Taking Whitefield Metro on Day 1 of commercial run

As the train approaches Swami Vivekanada Road station, the loco pilot drops a reminder - 'this train will run all the way to Whitefield'. The announcement of the opening of passenger service on the entire line only came in on Sunday, October 8. Everyone hasn't had time to catch up. There are  surprised looks, it's breaking news to many who quickly appear to look up further information on their phones. For some of us, it's the best thing we heard on a Monday morning.

Also read: Bengaluru Metro: Much-awaited Whitefield-Challaghatta corridor to be operational from October 9