Chennai: Metro ridership in the city crossed the one-crore mark for the second time this year in July, with 1.06 crore passengers travelling on the network. It is the highest monthly ridership recorded in 2026 so far, averaging 3.43 lakh commuters a day.The figure marks an increase from 96.75 lakh passengers (3.22 lakh a day) in June, when schools and colleges had just reopened. Officials attributed the jump to more commuters seeking an air-conditioned commute to escape the heat, educational institutions functioning the entire month, and office attendance returning to normal. March recorded the second-highest ridership of the year with 1.01 crore passengers.July 24 saw 3.84 lakh passengers, the highest daily ridership during the month.Average daily ridership, however, remains less than half the 7.75 lakh passengers a day projected when Phase-1 was planned. Experts have long attributed the shortfall to limited network coverage, poor first- and last-mile connectivity, and weak integration with suburban rail, MRTS and MTC services. They expect ridership to rise significantly once more Phase-2 corridors become operational and the metro reaches more residential and employment hubs.Among ticketing options, the Singara Chennai card remained the most preferred mode, accounting for 55.87 lakh journeys in July. Another 19.66 lakh commuters used single-journey paper QR tickets, while 12.68 lakh booked tickets through the Open Network for Digital Commerce. WhatsApp ticketing accounted for 4.51 lakh passenger trips, followed by 2.99 lakh through PayTM and 2.84 lakh via PhonePe.“The metro is fast and comfortable, so more people are using it. But many still don’t have a convenient way to reach stations. Until last-mile connectivity improves and more Phase-2 lines open, ridership will not increase substantially,” said R Baskar, an IT employee from Ashok Nagar.
