CHENNAI: Users of the National Common Mobility Card (NCMC)/Singara Chennai card for Chennai Metro Rail can now view their remaining balance while swiping their card, a feature previously unavailable. This long-awaited initiative was praised by the regular commuters.

T Eashwari, an IT professional, who has been using the card for a year expressed that she used to be frustrated by not being able to know the balance and keep track of the charges. “But, during the recent trips in Metro Rail using NCMC, I noticed that I get the ticket fare for the route travelled and, importantly, the available balance on SMS,” she said.

Another commuter, M Kamalesh, added that such transparency was welcome and that CMRL should soon introduce online recharge of NCMC.
“I use the Metro for my office commute. Hence, I recharge with a high amount frequently. As CMRL has ensured a feature to show balance in the card, it should also allow online recharge, so that passengers can skip queuing up near the ticketing counter,” he said.

In April 2023, CMRL, with the SBI, launched NCMC for seamless commuting across all modes of transportation.

The card can be used across all Metro stations in the country, and can be procured from any station in Chennai. In August 2024, instant NCMC dispensers were launched at 13 stations to skip the KYC process.