Bengaluru Metro hits record 9.66 lakh ridership during RCB's IPL 2025 victory celebrations marred by deadly stampede
BENGALURU:
Namma Metro
recorded its highest-ever ridership on Wednesday — the same day a stampede during Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) IPL victory celebrations claimed 11 lives and left 75 injured.
As thousands of fans flocked to Vidhana Soudha and M. Chinnaswamy Stadium to witness the celebrations, Namma Metro recorded its highest-ever single-day ridership, with a total of 9,66,732 passengers.
According to a press release by Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), metro usage across all corridors nearly tripled.
Line 1 (Purple Line) alone carried 478,334 passengers, while Line 2 (Green Line) accounted for 284,674.
The Majestic interchange station saw 203,724 commuters — among the highest footfalls for a single station.
The significant rise was mainly due to heavy footfall at key Central Business District (CBD) stations such as Cubbon Park, Vidhana Soudha, MG Road, and Sir
M. Visvesvaraya
.
On Wednesday evening, BMRCL was compelled to temporarily shut down Purple Line stations at Cubbon Park (close to Chinnaswamy Stadium), Vidhana Soudha, and MG Road owing to the heavy passenger footfall.
Officials said these closures were implemented as a precautionary safety measure due to overcrowding near the stadiums.
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