NOIDA: How about cutting your next birthday cake in a moving metro coach rather than your usual restaurant? Or posing with your fiancée with the large train windows in the background?
The Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) will soon throw open its coaches and stations for events such as birthday parties, pre-wedding shoots and anniversaries. It is in the process of hiring an event management firm that will promote Aqua Line metro as an attractive and affordable option for such events.
The initiative aims at generating revenue through ways other than just fare. The move comes at a time the Aqua Line ridership has steadily increased and stabilised after restrictions on movement were lifted. On March 28, the Aqua Line clocked 29,071 commuters, which is the highest since it resumed its services after the lockdown.
It was in February 2020 that NMRC had launched the initiative of booking coaches and the station premises. The project hit the block after the lockdown was imposed.
According to the tender document issued on March 28, the train coaches and station premises can be booked not just for family events but also for shooting films and ads. People can choose to either decorate the trains or leave them just like they are. As part of decorations, standees, banners and flowers would be allowed on grab handles and poles. Only non-adhesive materials can be used for decorating the coaches. The use of spray or magic candles is strictly prohibited inside the metro. The lighting of candles will be done only under the supervision of the NMRC staff.
People will be allowed to book one or more coaches, up to a maximum four. Running coaches will be available only in the operational hours, between 6am and 10.45pm. However, coaches in static trains will be available in non-operational hours too, between 11pm and 2am.
Without decoration, a coach in a running metro will cost Rs 8,000 an hour while that in a static metro Rs 5,000. Similarly, a decorated coach in a running train and a decorated coach in a static metro will cost Rs 10,000 and Rs 7,000, respectively. NMRC will allow a total of 50 people in every coach for an event. One centre table will be made available in every coach that is booked. The last date of applications is April 29.
