According to the urban ministry , over 326 km of metro lines have been made operational in the last five years and 373 km are in the pipeline.
With metro rail systems mushrooming (and expanding) across India, the ministry of housing and urban affairs has turned its attention to improving last-mile connectivity, one of the objectives articulated in the 2017 national metro policy.
To this end, the ministry has started focusing on feeder bus services, electric rickshaws, smart cycles (that can be rented out), electric scooter services, and partnerships with cab aggregators.
According to the national metro policy, the objective is to ensure that the lowest cost mass transit mode is selected for public transport.
The Centre is also working on a pilot project involving cab aggregators which have been alloted space on rent at metro stations to set up kiosks where cabs can be booked. "Process of allotment of bare spaces to the cab aggregators at all the metro stations is also underway for which the DMRC has already floated a tender," the official added.
"The alignment of metros such as Ahmedabad metro rail project phase-I is such that it integrates with BRTS, Indian Railways, and the city bus service at various strategic locations in both EastWest and North-South Corridors for seamless connectivity. Future transit systems such as the Mumbai–Ahmedabad high-speed bullet train will also integrate with phase-I at two locations," the official said.
Metro connectivity with BRTS at Ahmedabad is provided at nine stations currently.
The Centre is also working towards integrating electric vehicle transportation. A pilot is being undertaken by DMRC in five metro stations; in Chennai it is already operational in two stations; and it is also operational in Hyderabad, according to the ministry.