Once the improvements were completed, road and train links were built between Roma and Ostia and development began. The height of the growth took place with the advent of Fascism. The Fascist years witnessed the inauguration of Via del Mare, one of the first motorways in Italy and Via Cristoforo Colombo, once called the “via Imperiale;” both roads were built to connect Rome with the sea.

Unfortunately the construction fervour of the fascist period slowed with the Second World War interrupting the activity of the many open building sites which only regained momentum many years later.

At the beginning of the 1960s, Ostia expanded considerably, growing to the size of a true and proper suburb of Rome. Initially inhabited by fishermen and frequented by holidaymakers, it later became an actual neighbourhood of the capital city.

Over the last 30 years with the growth of the metropolis, the open land between Rome and Ostia has been reduced and has experienced an emergence of new urban concentrations in continuous transformation. Nowadays, Ostia, with its 88,000 residents is one of the largest satellite towns in Italy, and because of its numerous accommodation facilities, it has become a major tourist destination.