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Bengaluru’s Namma Metro fares are set to increase once again from February, with ticket prices expected to rise by around 5 per cent.
The announcement comes barely a year after the last major fare revision in February 2025, when ticket prices were hiked sharply across all slabs. (Photo Credit: X)
Ravi’s day starts even before the sun rises. He lives in Indiranagar, works at a private finance firm in Bommanahalli, and spends most workdays connecting those two ends of Bengaluru by metro.
A few years ago, he gave up riding his bike because the traffic was tiring him more than the long hours at work. The metro became their reset button – fast, quiet and for once, even easy on the pocket.
This morning, as he waits on the stage, he already knows what the next few months may bring. Another fare hike is coming, and for someone who travels on this line every day, it’s not just news, it’s personal.
What’s changing since February
Bengaluru’s Namma Metro fares are set to increase once again from February, with ticket prices expected to rise by around 5 per cent. The move follows the recommendations of the fare fixation committee, which suggested a system of small hikes from time to time rather than a major revision every few years.
For commuters, this signals a change in how metro fares will work going forward. Instead of a long period of stable prices, the cost of daily travel is now likely to increase gradually each year.
Why does Metro say it needs a hike?
Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited officials point to rising operating expenses. The cost of electricity, salaries of employees, regular maintenance of trains and stations and the expanding network have continuously increased the expenditure.
His argument is simple. Without regular fare revisions, the metro system risks financial stress which could ultimately impact service frequency, maintenance standards and future line expansion.
Shadow of last year’s fare revision
The announcement comes barely a year after the last major fare revision in February 2025, when ticket prices were hiked sharply across all slabs. That hike led to fares rising by up to 71 per cent in some categories, thrusting Bengaluru’s metro into the spotlight as one of the most expensive in the country.
For many passengers, memories of that amendment are still fresh. The monthly travel budget had already been recalculated once. The idea of ​​another raise so soon seems less like regular pricing and more like a pattern of rising costs that outpaces wage increases. The concern now is not about a single hike, but about how often passengers are now being asked to pay more.
What does a five per cent increase mean at the ground level?
On paper, a few percent may not seem dramatic. At the ground level it tells a different story. A daily commuter who uses the metro twice a day starts feeling the difference within a few weeks. For families where more than one person is dependent on the metro, the impact silently multiplies every month.
Some riders have already restarted their calculations, comparing metro fares with bus passes, carpooling and even returning to two-wheelers. The irony is not lost on him. A service designed to ease congestion and reduce pollution risks becoming a premium option rather than a mass transit solution.
Big question about public transportation
Urban transport experts say fare hikes are not unusual in fast-growing cities. What matters is balance. If people feel they are paying more, but are not seeing faster expansion, better last mile connectivity, or visible improvements in service quality, frustration quickly builds.
The challenge for Bengaluru Metro is not just to keep trains on time. It’s about keeping public trust on track while also asking passengers to put a little money in their pockets every year.
Back to Ravi’s morning trip
By the time Ravi boards his train, the platform looks exactly the same as it always does. Office workers with flasks of coffee in hand, students lost in their screens, salespeople leaving for early shifts. Nothing has changed about the scene yet.
But Ravi already has mathematics in his mind. Every swipe at the entrance now feels like a small question he will keep asking himself in the months to come. “Should I take the metro all the way to Bommanahalli or try to take a share auto after getting down somewhere in between? Will the difference money be enough to keep the budget almost as it is now, if not lower? Or will it impact the SIPs I have started since I started using the metro to save on petrol?” The calculations go on in his mind faster than the train on which he is traveling.
At the moment, he taps his card and steps inside the coach. Just another weekday ride from Indiranagar to Bommanahalli. Same road, same crowd, same crowd. Only the cost of travel is changing and with it, how everyday commuters like Ravi from Bengaluru see the future of getting around in their own city.
January 12, 2026, 10:45 IST
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