Fadnavis to inaugurate Sion ROB, Vidyavihar flyover and GMLR connector in Mumbai on Thursday

Mumbai is set to get three bridges after a long wait. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will on Thursday inaugurate the Sion road overbridge (ROB), the Vidyavihar flyover and the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) connector. The inauguration will be held at 1 pm at the Vidyavihar bridge site. The projects had been delayed.

The opening of the three bridges is expected to strengthen Mumbai's road infrastructure. Connectivity between key parts of the city will improve, and those who travel daily on congested roads will get relief. All three projects are important links meant to ease the movement of traffic and improve access to different parts of the city.

Confirming the inauguration, Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) Abhijit Bangar said, "All the work is done. All the inspections are complete. The bridges will be inaugurated and will be opened to the public soon."

The Vidyavihar flyover is expected to strengthen connectivity between the east and west of the suburb. The municipal corporation planned the bridge in 2016 and construction began in May 2018. The Vidyavihar connector includes one of Mumbai's longest steel road bridges, with a 98-metre section over ten railway lines.

The Sion ROB will improve connectivity between the Eastern Express Highway and the western part of the city. It will give a vital route to those crossing the railway tracks. The 110-year-old bridge that stood there connected the Eastern Express Highway with LBS Road and Dharavi Road. It had been declared structurally unsafe several years ago. An IIT audit report had pointed to its dilapidated condition as early as 2020, warning that the bridge had outlived its life and that keeping it standing over live railway lines was dangerous. The bridge was then closed and demolished, and work on the new bridge began in August 2024.

The GMLR connector will link Dindoshi court with Film City. It will improve connectivity in the western suburbs and give motorists travelling in the area a more convenient route. Its construction began in 2022.