Indian Roads

[RJK]

Last night as usual I went out for my drive..it was raining a little. I saw a manhole & went to avoid it..now thats my routing road & I knew that there was a manhole there. So I as usual went a little to the right so that I miss the manhole but what I didn't know was that there was also a big pothole which had formed due to rains. I'd been home since the last two days & bam..right wheel did avoid the pothole but left wheel went down in the pothole. The car stopped there. I thought s*** my bumper must have gone. Also at the same time steering started to vibrate. Reached home & checked the wheels & springs. The springs looked like they had got a push upwards..even my bonnet had come up a little indicating that the springs might be pushed upwards. Opened the hood to find that the Hi or high beam under the engine got bent I was under the impression that it'd cost around 10k at the most. Took it to Linkway Honda in the morning & he said that the damage was extensive & repairs could be upwards of 25k. Now I sincerely hope that Insurance covers this or else its a big hole in the wallet. The SA said he'd give the estimate by evening..so just waiting for that..

[Rehaan]

Man,

That sucks. You gotta be very careful driving at night and in the rain. Especially with the current condition of the roads after this bout of heavy rains we have been having in the city.
Last night i was on worli sea face @2am in the rain and there were no streetlights!! not the best driving conditions!!

cya
R

[shravan316]

Yikes!!
Its scary roads these days even in Bangalore.....in the newspaper there is a picture of a dangerous pothole(or as they call it.. POTHELL ), every single day

[salil_kulkarni]

hey,
i agree, the condition of our roads is getting worse by the minute. They call mumbai the financial capital of the country, one of the cities which has the maximum cash. But its doesnt seem so if u look at roads in mumbai. Even the main western Express Highway is filled with potholes left right and centre.
Sometimes i actually feel like making a whole documentary on the condition of the roads in our city, and sending it to all these news channels and newspapers. These government people are running crazy behind the world bank to get money for more rail and sky bus projects, but are least bothered about the condition of our roads. Even the best roads in the city are messed up now. All they will do is come and do a fill up job to last the rains and the Ganpati period, and then forget about it. A normal days journey on my bike from college to back home, makes a mess of all the organs in my body, and all the parts of my bike.
Sometimes i really wonder, these people file Public Interest Litigations all the time when someone does something wrong, when will people stand up and appeal against the authorities to fix our roads. When we have to sit and pay tax for our cars, insurance, PUC or any other taxes, they pounce on us to fine us heavily even if we are late by a day. Little do they realise, that we are not interested in paying them any of these taxes, cos at the end of the day, the same roads that we drive on, mess up our cars and cost us money. When will the people in the government realise that we need good roads, we need a clean city to actually be counted as one of the top cities in the world. Bernie(F1 boss) will reject any enquiries about a GP in India if he has a look at any of the roads in Mumbai. :P
I hope the authorities take some major steps and fast.
Sorry about your honda RJ.
Cheers

[normally_crazy]

rj,
thats bad man .....but yeah powai has also started getting potholes now....better to drive slow and be careful than to rue later.....

salil ,

i agree whole heartedly. also there is a another very certain death trap ....anyone who travels vashi to chembur and vice versa....after the vashi gaon signal till we hit the thane creek bridge....the road is absolutely dark and black. no streetlights and on top the dividers come up almost to the window of the car..i saw a premier padmini dashing into the divider and climb half way....maan the car was a goner...

whats the use of planning for super highway when normal street roads dont have lights? i know that im blaming the govt here but the people are equally responsible her ..i have seen young boys try and break newly installed street lights with stones !!!

i mean if this is the kind of attitude we have ..i dunoo what to do ?? no use grumbling , raving or ranting ....

cheers

[RJK]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (normally_crazy @ July 31 2004,17:58)]rj,
thats bad man .....but yeah powai has also started getting potholes now....better to drive slow and be careful than to rue later.....

NC,

I was doing about 20-25kmph & yeah it was dark there also...no street lights. Its the stretch that has been made recently..under the newly constructed flyover. No lights at all..since I knew that there was a manhole there I tried to avoid it.

[F50]

Ya, the conditions of the roads are bad and no streetlights then datz worst.
Some days back my family doc. coming back from airport I think there was no streetlights & raining heavily and he rammed into a taxi and man damage is upto 65k and insurance company is not payin the whole thing and my dad is negotiating for the claim ....

[aadix]

hey rj what happened?? how much is the estimate?
your's is a nhc right?

[normally_crazy]

rj,

what hapnd ? how much is the estimate ? and whats the reply ur insuarance company giving??

all ok i hope !!

cheers

[Stratos]

I remember.. this happened on my way to Surat.. it was pouring... and i couldnt see a pothole.. and my left front wheel went thru it.. and i could see my wheel cap flying high on my left.. side!
Results..Bent Rim.. Wheel cap.. no damage.. picked it up..and put it back!

Indian Roads = Land Rover off-road testing track!

[RJK]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Some days back my family doc. coming back from airport I think there was no streetlights & raining heavily and he rammed into a taxi and man damage is upto 65k and insurance company is not payin the whole thing and my dad is negotiating for the claim ....

F50,

Which car was that & which insurance company is that? I would guess it might be New India. Mine is TATA AIG.

[RJK]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (aadix @ July 31 2004,20:59)]hey rj what happened?? how much is the estimate?
your's is a nhc right?

NO aadix. Mine is Old Honda City 1.5. The estimate he said is around 25k to the max.

[RJK]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (normally_crazy @ July 31 2004,22:13)]rj,

what hapnd ? how much is the estimate ? and whats the reply ur insuarance company giving??

all ok i hope !!

cheers

NC,

Couldn't call the Insurance company today. Will do it either tomorrow or Monday.

[F50]

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] (rjkulkarni @ July 31 2004,23:04)]F50,

Which car was that & which insurance company is that? I would guess it might be New India. Mine is TATA AIG.

It was Santro and ya i think it was with New India and according to me Tata Aig dont take much time in settling the claim

[Aditya]

RJ, that absolutely sucks! Thank God nothing's happened to you. The quality of material used for road building and the workmanship is third grade. There are hardly any roads in our city which can be described as good. With the kind of people involved in running our government and municipality, this is expected.
I had gone to Andheri East today and was amazed by the condition of the roads. In all these years of driving in Mumbai, never have I come across such appalling roads. It was just extreme caution on my part and luck that got me through without any problem. Infact, the rear tyre did hit an big and nasty pothole, but, I was very slow and that saved my car. What more? There are potholes on the flyovers on WE Highway too - a sure invitation to accidents.
Drive slow in the monsoons. It's your safest bet.