CHENNAI: The Union government has given its approval for the purchase of additional trains of six coaches for Rs 2,820.90 crore for operating the Chennai Metro Rail.

The CMRL currently has four-car trains plying in the city from 5 am till 11 pm.

In 2024, the ridership in the Metro trains witnessed a sharp spike, with average monthly ridership crossing three lakh passengers per month.

The ridership, too, is seen increasing every month, where in July alone the ridership rose by 11 lakh compared to June month.

Hence, to meet the growing demands, CMRL has sought the approval for purchase of additional trains from State government and the same was forwarded to Centre’s Department of Economic Affairs.

Following which, the new purchase of 28 six-coach Metro trains at a cost of Rs 2,820.90 crore was approved.

Meanwhile, CMRL currently operates 45 Metro trains of four coaches covering 54 km in Chennai city.