Mumbai’s long-delayed Vidyavihar flyover has entered the final phase of construction, with only the concrete casting of two remaining spans left before the project is completed. Civic officials said the pending work is expected to be finished by August 31, after which the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will carry out mandatory load testing and technical safety inspections.
The flyover is expected to be opened to motorists only after it successfully clears all safety evaluations and is likely to become operational after September 8.
The four-lane connector will link Ramkrishna Chemburkar Marg in Vidyavihar East with Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) Marg in the west. It also includes a 100-metre section crossing the Central Railway tracks and will provide direct access to the footpaths of Vidyavihar railway station, improving connectivity for pedestrians.
“Barring the concrete casting of two spans, most of the work has been completed. After completion, load testing and technical safety checks will be carried out before opening the flyover for traffic,” said a senior official from the BMC’s Bridges Department.
To ensure smooth traffic flow after the flyover opens, the BMC has started widening approach roads on both sides of the structure. Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) Abhijit Bangar recently inspected the project and directed officials to resolve bottlenecks, address issues related to affected establishments, footpaths and trees, and complete the remaining work on priority.
The civic body is also preparing a traffic management plan in coordination with the Mumbai Traffic Police to facilitate seamless vehicular movement, particularly during peak hours.
The flyover project was first proposed in 1991 and gathered momentum in 2016. Construction began in 2018, with the project initially scheduled for completion by mid-2022. However, the timeline was pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic, design revisions, and other execution challenges. AB Infrabuild Limited received the work order in February 2024, and after multiple extensions, the project cost has increased to Rs 178.93 crore.
Once commissioned, the 612-metre-long flyover is expected to significantly improve east-west connectivity by reducing travel time between Vidyavihar East and West from 40-45 minutes during peak hours to around 10-15 minutes.
The structure features a 100-metre railway span, one of the longest bridge girders constructed over railway tracks in Mumbai. Each girder weighs approximately 1,100 metric tonnes. The project is expected to ease congestion across the Vidyavihar-Ghatkopar-Kurla corridor while helping commuters save time, fuel and travel costs.
Source: The Free Press Journal
