Indian cities are witnessing an expansion of the Metro network. Higher coverage of areas by Metro is having multiple effects on the quality of life as well as the real estate sector.
Metro offers air-conditioned ride comfort, especially important in the hot Indian summer, speed of travel, and is also free of fossil fuel pollution and therefore healthier for citizens.
In Kolkata, Metro is helping the city to expand as more and more adjoining areas are being included in the Metro network. This is opening up more areas for property development as more homebuyers are ready to shift away from the city proper as connectivity is improved.
How New Metro Lines Benefit Residents
Kolkata is the city where the first Metro started plying along a stretch of the city. This revolutionized commuting by cutting down travel time to a bare minimum compared to other modes of transport.
The primary benefit of the Metro is saving travel time. In a city where road space is inadequate, and traffic snarls are the order of every day, the Metro is a godsend for its citizens.
Every extension of the Metro has helped even the residents of the hinterland as additional connectivity started with autorickshaws and public buses.
So, when the Kolkata Metro was extended to Garia (Kabi Subhash) station, it benefitted anyone who lived even further away from the Metro station. He could access the Metro as there was the suburban rail network, autorickshaw, and public bus connecting his home location with the Metro.
After a long gap of a few years, construction of the second line of Kolkata Metro (also known as the East-West Metro and Green Line) started and is currently partly operational (Salt Lake-Sealdah stretch). This has hugely helped the regular commuters of Salt Lake Sector 5.
Similarly, the residents of Joka and nearby areas considerably benefitted as the Joka Taratala stretch of the Joka-Esplanade line (Kolkata Metro line 3 or Purple Line) became operational.
Kolkata Metro — Recent Expansion Spree
Kolkata Metro has ambitious expansion plans to develop a network of 100 km in the next 3-4 years.. It is estimated that close to 18 lakh people will use the Metro daily by 2025.
Currently, the Metro lines that are being constructed on a focused basis are:
- Joka-Esplanade line (in phases)
- East West Metro (Salt Lake-Howrah line)
- Airport-New Garia line
- Noapara Airport line
It is expected that the East-West Metro will be completed shortly within a year. It will boast of a section going under the Ganges, the first Metro traveling under any river.
After the Joka-Taratala section became operational, the New Garia-Ruby (Kabi Subhash-Hemanta Mukhopadhyay) section is waiting for its inauguration now.
Garia and EM Bypass will have Better Connectivity
After the inauguration of the New Garia-Ruby stretch is operational, the benefits of easy connectivity with different parts of the city will accrue to the residents of various locations along the Metro line.
New Garia Metro station is also the terminal station of the Kolkata Metro North-South line (Line 1, the Blue Line) and you can change here if you are arriving from Ruby and traveling as far as Dakshineswar.
Moreover, you can travel by the suburban rail network and go further south.
All along the Metro line, areas such as Ajaynagar, Nayabad, Santoshpur, Kasba, Anandapur, and all areas around Garia Station will benefit tremendously. There will be an introduction of more autorickshaw routes as last-mile connectivity needs to improve to support the Metro.
Subsequently, this line will be extended to Beliaghata and passengers will be able to travel from Dakshineswar to Beliaghata in a single token.
Finally, this line will connect New Garia with Salt Lake Sector 5.
Once that happens, thousands of people will benefit who need to go to Salt Lake Sector 5 every day.
Those coming from the southern suburbs can get down at New Garia station of the suburban railway and travel to Sector 5 by Metro.
Now, they get off at Sealdah and board an East-West Metro train.
More Areas will Open up for Property Development
In this year’s Union budget, Kolkata Metro has been allotted Rs 3,220.25 crore for different ongoing Metro projects. In 2022-2023, Rs 1,216.25 crore was proposed to be allocated.
Clearly, there is a substantial jump in financial outlay on Kolkata Metro.
This enhancement of monetary allocation will help Kolkata Metro to add a total of 30.75km to the Metro network this year, which now spans 47.93km.
Kolkata Metro authorities stated their plans for different lines recently.
It is expected that the Noapara Airport section will also be operational this year.
The Joka Taratala stretch will be extended till Majerhat, where the station is coming up over the railway yard, by the end of this year.
Trains should run the full 16.5-km course between Sector V and Howrah Maidan by the end of 2023. The Howrah Esplanade section infrastructure — tracks and stations — is almost ready.
All these Metro extensions will open up newer areas for property development as travel time to Kolkata and the business districts such as BBD Bag, and Salt Lake Sector 5 will significantly reduce.
For example, you can catch a Metro from Nayabad and travel to Ruby easily. In the near future, you will be able to commute comfortably to Sector 5 by Metro.
Similarly, it will be easier for the residents of Howrah and beyond to travel to BBD Bag, Esplanade, Park Street, and Salt Lake Sector 5, and buying a flat in these areas will make eminent sense.
We can imagine that areas 4-5 km further from the Metro stations will be ripe for real estate development, especially for the affordable housing sector.
These developments will massively help homebuyers who are looking for affordable homes but need to travel to the workplaces in the city in a comfortable way without spending much time.
If you are looking for home-buying options in these areas, contact us today.
Prices will increase once these Metro projects are completed.
The time is now.
