August 4, 2025: Mumbai’s growing metro network is a clear reflection of the city’s desire to modernise urban transportation. With multiple lines now functioning and numerous more under construction, the investment in infrastructure is obvious. However, the long-term viability of this change is dependent not just on the construction of new lines, but also on how easily the metro fits into its people’ everyday commutes.
As of July 2024, Mumbai’s metro system was carrying over 747,000 passengers daily—an impressive milestone. Yet, there remains room to enhance system efficiency and commuter experience. For example, the Aqua Line (Metro 3), which connects Aarey to the Bandra-Kurla Complex, saw daily usage average below 20,000 commuters between October 2024 and February 2025—compared to its projected capacity of 400,000. Similarly, Metro Lines 2A and 7, while experiencing peak ridership of 292,000 in a single day, are currently operating at about 33% of their designed capacity.
These statistics hint to an opportunity: improving how commuters enter and exit the tube. Improving last-mile connectivity can increase ridership and broaden usage. This involves enhancing pedestrian pathways, expanding feeder bus service, and assuring dependable short-distance transportation options like rickshaws. Currently, an estimated 45,000 daily commuters to BKC face such obstacles, emphasising the importance of focused initiatives in crucial zones.
In a commendable move, the MMRDA has allocated Rs 12,000 crore to key metro projects in 2025, with Rs 535 crore set out for multimodal integration at 32 stations. Initiatives such as uniform ticketing systems and real-time commuter data are also being developed. To be successful, these initiatives will require efficient inter-agency collaboration and timely execution. Organisations can use systems thinking to establish smooth transitions between metro, bus, rail, and pedestrian movement.
Globally, cities that have successfully transitioned to public transport-led mobility have placed commuters at the center of planning. Alongside expanding the metro, Mumbai has the opportunity to rethink mobility with a “people-first” lens—investing in walkability, ensuring safe and connected sidewalks, re-energising bus services, and encouraging behavioural shifts toward public transit.
Rather than seeing the metro as a standalone solution, it should be positioned as the backbone of a much larger mobility web—one that includes pedestrians, cyclists, buses, shared vehicles, and digital tools. Such a holistic framework is key to unlocking the full value of the metro system.
If Mumbai truly wants to move its people and not just its trains, it must connect the dots between policy, infrastructure, and the daily realities of its 20 million residents.
