Chennai: “CMRL has taken several initiatives like share taxi, share auto, tempo feeder services, bicycle schemes, Zoom car and electric auto services for last-mile connectivity at several places and will cover all the Metro stations in future,” said Chennai Metro Rail Ltd Director (Systems and Operations) Narasim Prasad.

He said this during the launch of corporate shuttle feeder services called ‘Office Ride’ at Alandur Metro station today. “This will provide corporate commuters a smarter, safer and happier daily commuting alternative connecting Alandur Metro station to Ascendas, Global Infocity, RMZ Millenia, ELCOT and SIPCOT. The service will provide nodal connectivity and help reduce traffic, congestion and pollution by encouraging the use of shared mobility thereby providing a smarter and safer daily commuting alternative to people travelling to business parks and corporate hubs near the station. In the near future, it will be expanded to AG-DMS, Anna Nagar East, Anna Nagar Tower, Koyambedu, Ashok Nagar and many other Metro stations connecting them with almost all the employment parks in the city,” he added.

Ford Smart Mobility India country director R Mahadevan, said, “Around 115 years ago, Ford changed the way the world moved and it is our responsibility to do it again. As a mobility company, we are working with cities to help address growing transportation needs and we are excited to launch Office Ride as a nodal connectivity solution for CMRL.”

A CMRL spokesperson said, “A total of five vehicles with seating capacity for about 12 will be launched for now and more of them will be launched based on public demands. Each vehicle under Office Ride will provide a wi-fi connected, air-conditioned environment, elevating daily commute to new levels of comfort and connectivity. In the morning, a total of nine trips will be made from 8 am to 12 pm and another nine trips will be made in the evening from 5 pm to 9 pm.”