10/10/2025
Mumbai Metro 3: After nearly ten years of waiting, Mumbai finally opened its first underground Metro line – the Aqua Line (Metro 3) – on Thursday. By 9pm, 1,46,087 people had used the new line, showing just how much people needed a faster connection between the suburbs and South Mumbai, according to a media report. The Aqua Line now runs fully from Aarey to Cuffe Parade, covering 33.5 km entirely underground. This is now India’s longest fully underground Metro line built in one go.
Before, only a part of the line was running, and it had around 60,000 daily passengers. But now, with the full route open, ridership more than doubled, showing strong demand for direct travel to business and government areas in South Mumbai, said The Times of India.
Ramesh Jadhav, who works in insurance at Cuffe Parade, used to spend over an hour travelling from Worli depot to work. Now, the Metro takes him just 19 minutes for Rs 20.
A survey by Times of India showed the Metro saves both time and money:
Aarey to Cuffe Parade: Metro = 58 min (Rs 70), Car = 1hr 22min (Rs 800)
BKC to Churchgate: Metro = 31 min (Rs 30), Car = 36 min (Rs 560)
T2 (airport) to CSMT: Metro = 40 min (Rs 50), Car = 56 min (Rs 929)
That’s a 40% time saving and up to 80% cost saving.
Neha Shah, a bank employee, used to spend Rs 200 daily on autos and still arrived late. Now, she reaches on time in just 25 minutes for Rs 40. "I can now plan my meetings properly," she said.