Noida: The last stop on the 29.7-km Aqua Line corridor, Depot metro station serves students and residents travelling to nearby universities, corporate parks and residential sectors off the Noida Expressway. But outside the station — soon to be extended to a proposed multi-modal transport hub in Dadri — the lack of shared transport has become a daily ordeal for commuters.With few shared vehicles waiting outside, passengers are often left choosing between a long wait and an inflated fare. Auto-rickshaw drivers, commuters say, routinely charge more for short hops, and even then, a ride can take up to 20 minutes to appear.“I take the metro because it’s fast and reliable,” said Kushal, a student of Galgotias University, adjusting his backpack as he scanned the road for his bike taxi. “But I end up spending 15 to 20 minutes figuring out how to travel the last two kilometres to the campus from the metro station. I have taken a flat along with three friends in Delta I. On days that we come together, we share an auto, but on some days, when I am travelling alone, I am forced to book a bike taxi.”Commuters said that unlike other metro stations in Noida and Delhi, where auto-rickshaws, e-rickshaws and cabs jostle for space and encroach on roadsides, the road outside Depot station is deserted almost around the clock. “It is almost the same throughout the year. Most of the commuters are college students. Ideally, there should have been a feeder bus service,” said Sakshi, a second-year student of Sharda University.Anushka Singh, a student of KR Mangalam University, said she has stopped depending on auto-rickshaws outside the station altogether. “It is difficult to find an offline shared ride here. I usually rent one of the bikes parked nearby and pay Rs 30 to reach Migsun. Auto-rickshaw drivers ask for Rs 70 or Rs 80 for the same distance, so the bike is cheaper and faster,” she said.Like Anushka, Sakshi and Kushal, many of those waiting outside Depot station are students headed to colleges such as Sharda University, Galgotias University and KR Mangalam University. With limited budgets and fixed class timings, they say even a short delay can mean missing lectures, practicals or examinations.Lok Nayak, a resident of Migsun who travels to Noida Sector 62 to attend editing classes, said the problem is especially frustrating while returning home. “If you’re coming from the residential sectors towards the metro, app-based cabs usually work. But returning home from the station is another story. Either you take one of the local bikers if they’re around or try booking online. If you get a ride within 15 minutes, you should consider yourself lucky,” he said.Yogesh Gupta, who owns a bike, is among the few riders who have found an opportunity to make quick money by ferrying passengers. “E-rickshaw drivers don’t wait here because there is no designated stand. Passengers either keep waiting or start walking in the heat or negotiate with whoever happens to pass by. I saw this as an opportunity and started parking my bike here and offering rides to passengers. I usually charge anywhere between Rs 30 and Rs 50 to drop passengers two to three kilometres away,” he said.Commuters said the shortage of e-rickshaws becomes pronounced during peak hours. Anita, a field worker with Delhi-based NGO Vihaan travelling to Jaitpur village in Greater Noida, said she expected the station to function like those in Delhi. “I thought I would get down here and immediately find shared autos and e-rickshaws, as you do in Delhi. Instead, there are only a handful of auto drivers. There is no choice but to bargain, and honestly, who wants to stand in this heat waiting for a ride?” she said.While the metro ride from Dwarka to Depot station cost Anita just Rs 100, she ended up spending Rs 300 on the journey to Jaitpur village and back.An official with the Noida Metro Rail Corporation said the Aqua Line is set to be extended beyond Depot station as part of a major connectivity push in Greater Noida. The approved 2.6-km extension will add two elevated stations — MMTH (Multi-Modal Transport Hub) and Boraki — linking the metro to a future regional transport hub integrating railway, bus and local transit services. “We are working on improving connectivity from the station and trying to attract local drivers to solve this issue,” the official said.
