The e-pass window for Metro passengers is likely to be further narrowed from next week, officials in the carrier said.

Under the current system, an e-pass is mandatory for male passengers between 16 and 59 years to enter the station during the morning and evening rush — 8.30am to 11am and 5pm to 8pm.

“The plan is to further shorten the window from 9am to 11am and 5pm to 7pm,” a Metro official said.

A fleet of 216 trains run from Monday to Saturday. The first and last trains now leave the terminal stations at 7am and 9.30pm, respectively.

The e-pass system was introduced along with the resumption of Metro services on September 14 for crowd control. Downloading an e-pass was mandatory for all to enter a Metro station. A smart card is a must to board a train.

In a phased manner, the carrier has relaxed the e-pass norms. As of now, women, children (15 years and below) and senior citizens (60 years and above) do not need an e-pass throughout the day.

Till December 14, men between 16 and 59 years needed e-pass throughout the day, except between 7am and 8.30am and post 8pm. From December 14, the window was shortened to 8.30am-11am and 5pm-8pm.

“But even after that we have been noticing a lot of vacant slots between 8am and 9am and from 7pm to 8pm. So, we decided to narrow the window further,” said the Metro official.

The carrier wants to do away with the system of e-passes in phases. Officials said they did not see the number of passengers going up alarmingly in the coming days even without the e-pass system.

“The token system will remain suspended for now. But we want to do away with the e-pass system in phases and make Metro services accessible for all throughout the day,” said Manoj Joshi, the Metro general manager.