One arm of flyover on Ganeshkhind Road to be open to public from Wednesday

It was expected that both flyovers would be inaugurated on August 15.

“The Ganeshkhind Road flyover has been constructed by Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) as an alternative solution to ease traffic congestion in the area. The flyover will be opened to traffic after the inauguration. Commuting through this area will become more convenient for motorists and citizens,” said Yogesh Mhase, Metropolitan Commissioner of PMRDA.

The integrated double-decker flyover was constructed at a cost of Rs 277 crore. To ease traffic congestion and provide adequate road space for traffic, Ganeshkhind Road has been widened up to 45 metres between Pune University and the College of Agriculture. The ramps on the Shivajinagar and Aundh sides are completed, while the remaining ramps on the Baner and Pashan sides are expected to be completed by October 2025, Mhase said.

Actual construction of the flyover began in August 2022. The government approved the agreement between the Metro Concessionaire Company and PMRDA in May 2020 for the construction of a double decker flyover to replace the earlier two one-way flyovers, which were demolished in August 2020. The double decker flyover has a Metro rail on top, which is the Maan-Hinjewadi to Shivajinagar Metro Line-3. The total length of the flyover is 1.7 km, while the Aundh to Shivajinagar arm is 1.3 km and is a three lane road with a width of 9.5 metres.

For the 23.203 km elevated metro project from Maan-Hinjewadi to Shivajinagar, the construction of a Metro station at University Junction is underway. A proposed Metro skywalk will connect the Metro station to Aundh, Baner and Pashan roads. The Metro rail project on the route is progressing well, with 88.51 per cent of physical work complete to date.

The 1,540 metre-long arm of the flyover from Goel Ganga Chowk to Inamdar Chowk on Sinhagad road will need more time before it is opened to the public. In the Sinhagad Road flyover project, a one-way flyover with a length of 520 metres at Rajaram Bridge Chowk and a 2,120-metre long flyover from Vithalwadi to Fun Time Theatre had been opened to the public earlier.

“Most of the work of the flyover arm from Goel Ganga to Inamdar Chowk has been completed. However work on thermoplastic paint, signages, boards and junction improvement for safety purposes are still underway. The Pune Municipal Corporation is working on the city police’s suggestions on safety infrastructure at the junctions on roads. Street lights are being installed but this work is getting affected due to the rain. The flyover will be open as soon as the work is completed,” said a PMC official.

Opposition Congress and NCP(SP) had criticised the administration for delaying the flyovers’ inauguration and ignoring problems of citizens using the road.

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