The Lucknow Metro is a mass rapid transit (MRT) system in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. The metro is owned and operated by the Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation (UPMRC). The frequency of the metro's services is around 5 - 7 minutes. Along with Delhi Meerut RRTS, Meerut Metro, Noida-Greater Noida Metro, Kanpur Metro and Agra Metro, it is one of the 5 operational metro networks in Uttar Pradesh. It is the 3rd largest urban transit system in Uttar Pradesh after Delhi Meerut RRTS and Noida Metro. Construction of the Phase 1A line began on 27 September 2014 with the 8.5 km stretch from to which began its commercial operation on 5 September 2017. Full operation on Red Line stretch from to began operation on 9 March 2019. The Lucknow metro project is the most expensive transport system in Uttar Pradesh to date with an estimated total cost for Phase 1A (Red Line) and 1B (Blue Line) of about $2 billion, of which inr 69280000000 was spent on phase 1A. The Government of Uttar Pradesh Approved the construction of the 11.165 km long East-West Corridor between to, Phase 1B Blue Line at an estimated budget of inr 58810000000 in January 2024. Lucknow Metro achieved its highest ever ridership of 1.30 lakh passengers since its inception in 2017 on 1st January 2024 which surpassed the previous record of 93,237 passengers set on 25th December 2023.

History

The original design of the metro project included one north-south and one east-west corridor, with links through Gomti Nagar. Estimated costs for the north-south corridor were inr 54130000000, inr 36110000000 for the east-west corridor and inr 4950000000 for the link through Gomti Nagar. The initial layout of the east-west corridor started from Rajajipuram and ended at Hahnemann, after passing through Gomti Nagar via Hazratganj and Patrakarpuram, a distance of 14 km. However, in 2010 the design was changed so the corridor started from Vasant Kunj and terminated at Charbagh, a revised distance of 13 km. The design of north–south corridor had two elevated sections, with a total distance of 19 km, separated by a 3 km. The length of the ramps between the elevated and below ground sections would total 0.8 km. When completed, the corridor would run for a total distance of 23 km and connect Amausi airport to Munshipulia. Passengers would be served by a total of 22 stations, with 19 elevated and 3 below ground. Elevated stations were to be located at, , , , , , , , ,. Following Charbagh station, the line descends underground where, (Uttar Pradesh Secretariat) and stations are located. The line then returns above ground for the remaining stations of the corridor,, , , , , , and the terminus at. The metro could accommodate speeds up to 90 km/h but the typical usage would be at speeds of 34 km/h for the north–south corridor and 32 km/h for the east–west corridor. Originally, the metro trains were to be housed in one of two depots, a 20 ha depot at Vasant Kunj and another at the airport, but due to security concerns the airport depot was removed from the plan. In 2013, a report published by the Department of Housing and Urban Planning of the Government of Uttar Pradesh resulted in major changes to the metro project. The two corridor design was scrapped and replaced with one featuring a denser network of connectivity. This revision resulted in the layout of route being entirely elevated with no underground sections. The increased coverage of the metro would raise the cost of the project but reduced the operating cost per km. The reduction in operating cost is impacted by the difference in construction costs of the line itself, one km of overhead track costs inr 1800000000 as compared to inr 5500000000 for an underground track. The underground design also raised concerns about safety as well as increased energy consumption. The report also proposed the construction of an elevated Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) as a feeder service to the metro.

Project timeline

Red Line

Blue Line

Route network

Phase 1

In Phase 1, 21 metro stations were built on the Red Line from CCS Airport to Munshipulia and 12 metro stations will be built on the Blue Line from Charbagh to Vasant Kunj.

Current phases

Current status

Funding

Over 50% of the Lucknow Metro rail project is funded through external debt from European Investment Bank. The Lucknow Metro has its own operating body, the Lucknow Metro Rail Corporation, is a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) and a 50:50 Joint Venture set-up by the Government of India and Government of Uttar Pradesh. LMRC is headquartered in Vipin Khand, Gomti Nagar, Lucknow.

Infrastructure

Rolling stock

On 5 October 2015, Alstom was awarded a inr 11020000000 contract to construct twenty four car EMU for Phase 1A, based on their Metropolis design. The vehicles are to be constructed at Alstom's factory in Sricity, Andhra Pradesh.

Station facilities

WiFi is available at each station with free access for smart card holders. Other services include free purified drinking water and free toilets. The north–south corridor of the Lucknow Metro uses an automated fare collection (AFC) system, provided by Datamatics.

Security

Lucknow Metro's security is based on a hybrid model. The Lucknow City Police, which has raised a dedicated squad of 393 personnel for this purpose from PAC, provides general security, which includes frisking, scanning, maintaining and having quick response teams (QRT) as per security norms, while a private security agency provides operational security, which including maintaining hygiene of the station and ensuring that people queue properly. Personnel from the PAC were especially trained for providing security by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) in New Delhi. Apart from this, CCTV and metal detectors are installed at every metro station.

Ticketing and recharge

Smart Cards and Tokens are available from Ticket Counters for travelling.

Ridership

The cumulative ridership of the metro rail in Lucknow crossed 1 million in the first 70 days of commercial operation; the rapid-transit system received 31,688 passengers on its inaugural day of services, and recorded a ridership of 41,075 on 10 September. , the daily ridership of Lucknow Metro ranges between 10,000 and 11,000; with monthly ridership being 480,000 in September 2017, 400,000 in October 2017, 300,000 in November and December 2017, and around 300,000 in January, February, March and April 2018. As of 2019, as many as 60,000 people are using metro service on a daily basis in Lucknow. Lucknow Metro achieved its highest ever ridership of 1.30 lakh passengers since its inception in 2017 on 1st January 2024 which surpassed the previous record of 93,237 passengers set on 25th December 2023.

In popular culture

In January 2017, Hindi film Behen Hogi Teri became the first film to shoot scenes on the metro premises.

Awards

Network map