The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will be open for full traffic on June 20. This is after the completion of the 4.9-kilometre tunnel near Kota in Rajasthan, the final missing link on the 1,386-kilometre corridor.
The tunnel, which cuts beneath the Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve, is the first eight-lane road tunnel in India and took nearly four and a half years to build. Its completion removes the last major barrier to uninterrupted traffic movement from the national capital to India’s financial centre.
What the tunnel means for the project
The Mukundara Hills stretch had been one of the most technically and ecologically demanding segments on the entire expressway. Engineers were required to build underneath a protected tiger reserve, ruling out a conventional surface road through the hills.
The subterranean design allows vehicles to pass at speed without disturbing the wildlife corridor above. Officials say the tunnel is among the most complex pieces of civil engineering on the project.
A decade in the making
The project was formally launched in March 2019, when Union Minister Nitin Gadkari laid the foundation stone for multiple sections. Construction has since proceeded in 52 packages across six states, Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra, with work awarded to roughly 20 construction companies. Land acquisition for the project required nearly 15,000 hectares.
The total project cost, including land acquisition, is estimated at approximately Rs 1 lakh crore. Sections have been opened in phases over the past three years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 246-km Sohna-Dausa-Lalsot stretch in February 2023, the first completed segment to go public.
The 87-km Vadodara-Bharuch section in Gujarat followed in February 2024. Most recently, on June 5, 2026, two Gujarat sections, including the 36-km Kim-Ena stretch and the 27.5-km Gandeva-Ena section, were opened to traffic.
Connectivity to Jewar Airport and Navi Mumbai Airport
Apart from providing a traffic-free experience to the passengers, the Delhi Mumbai Expressway also provides direct connectivity to two newly operational greenfield airports, Jewar Airport in Uttar Pradesh and Navi Mumbai Airport in Maharashtra.
It also terminates at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in Navi Mumbai, one of India’s busiest container ports.
What changes once it opens
The full corridor is designed to reduce road travel time between Delhi and Mumbai from over 24 hours to approximately 12 hours. The expressway is built to eight lanes with land reserved in the median for future expansion to 12 lanes.
Beyond travel time, the project is expected to materially lower logistics costs on one of India’s busiest freight routes, improving interstate connectivity across Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.
The expressway connects Delhi’s DND Flyway to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Navi Mumbai, passing through key cities including Dausa, Kota, Ratlam, Vadodara, and Surat.
Features and infrastructure
The expressway is planned to have wayside amenities at 93 locations along its length, with facilities including fuel stations, food courts, ATMs, and electric vehicle charging points. Trauma centres with helipads are planned at every 100 kilometres.
An environment-sensitive design runs through the project. Approximately 20 lakh trees are planned along the corridor, with drip irrigation and rainwater harvesting systems every 500 metres.
Wildlife crossings totalling 2.5 kilometres in combined length have been incorporated on stretches that fall within known animal corridors between tiger reserves, including Sariska, Ranthambore, Mukundara Hills, and Ramgarh Vishdhari.
What it means for travellers
The most immediate change for anyone driving between Delhi and Mumbai will be time. A journey that currently demands upwards of 24 hours on national highways, with the usual toll stops, town crossings, and two-lane bottlenecks, comes down to roughly 12 hours on the expressway.
The road is access-controlled, meaning no stray cattle, no tractor crossings, no local traffic bleeding in from villages. Speeds of up to 120 kilometres per hour are permitted on the corridor.
The expressway will also offer wayside amenity stops at 93 points along the route, with fuel, food, and electric vehicle charging available at regular intervals.