Kolkata Metro: Sealdah station on city’s East-West Metro corridor inaugurated; check train timings, route details

The East-West Metro’s Sealdah station was inaugurated by Union Minister for Women and Child welfare, Smriti Irani on Monday. It will help the daily commuters reach their destination from the Sealdah railway station to the city more easily avoiding the bus route.

The new Sealdah Metro station, which is located adjacent to Sealdah Railway station has been built at an estimated cost of Rs 1,250 crore and will help over 35,000 commuters reach their destination each day, said the Union Minister. The Indian Railways has also enhanced the state’s infrastructure by providing multiple services through the Metro. Smriti Irani said the government has taken necessary steps to strengthen the infrastructure and communication system in the region in order to accommodate the increasing population, especially the workforce.

The commercial services will begin on July 14 at the newly-opened Sealdah Metro station, which is part of the East-West corridor. The service is now available between the IT hub of the city, Sector V and Phoolbagan and will be further extended by 2.33 km to connect Teghoria with Howrah by going underneath the Hooghly River. A part of the metro line runs under the Hoogly river and is the first of its kind in the country.

The first phase of the metro route between Salt Lake Sector V and Salt Lake Stadium was inaugurated by Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on February 13, 2020, and commercial services started on 14 February 2020.

Amenities at the Sealdah metro stations

The Sealdah Metro station is the seventh stop of the East-West Metro’s network. In March this year, the railway safety commissioner gave its approval for the construction of the 2.3-km long corridor. The station also has an interchange facility to allow commuters to access the Eastern Railway’s services.

The Metro station features eight staircases, 18 lifts, and four platforms. With a base fare of Rs 10, the Sealdah Metro station is very economical. From Sector V to Salt Lake, passengers can easily travel up to 10 kilometers in around 20 minutes.

The Sealdah Metro station is bigger than the Phool Bagan Metro station. It also has an island platform that will help the passengers exit the metro coach.

Timings of the metro trains from Phoolbagan to Sector V

The timings of the East-West Metro’s trains are expected to get changed due to the extension of the Sealdah route. A new schedule is being prepared which will allow the first train to leave from Sealdah at 6:55 am and that from the final station Sector V at 7 am.

The new schedule will allow the trains to run every 15 minutes during the peak hours i.e 9 AM to 11.30 AM and every 20 minutes during the rest of the day. This means that during the lean hours, the trains can be operated every 15 minutes. Currently, the East-West Metro trains run every 30 minutes during the morning and evening hours.

The last train from Sealdah and Sector V to the city may leave at 9.40 and 9.35 am. On weekends, the East-West Metro does not provide services due to the low number of people using this route but now Saturday train services might starts after the reopening of the Sealdah station. On Thursday, the service will be expanded to include the Sealdah route. From Thursday, there will be 100 services overall (50 in each direction).