How to get the latest updates on road conditions

[sam_edp]

Hello All,

For quite some time, I have been trying to get reliable and up-to-date information on driving conditions and roadside halt points on some of the major road routes viz., Pune - Ahmedabad-Delhi and then on the Pune-Bangalore route. After reading through a good number of travelogues, I realise that driving long distances at a stretch or taking frequent halts on the way is entirely a matter of personal preference and depends upon some facts like travelling with friends or with wife and kids, day-time / night-time driving and so on. But then, with each travelogue being so unique, how can we come up with some of the most common requirements for a safe and comfortable journey? I am trying to put forth some of these questions and some of my findings on the same.

• Latest Road conditions : Most of the time, when we see the travelogue posts, the road conditions may have changed for the better or for worse since travelogues age. I found out a couple of links on nhai.org that shows the status of a route. Please check out this link : Welcome to NHAI
• List of decent stop-overs on a route : Roadside dhabas and fuel stations are ok…but where can one stop especially when travelling with wife and kids and may need at least a store and a decent eatery? I have been trying to get a list of these, especially between Mumbai and Baroda. I have seen some of the threads providing a directory of Reliance pumps on this route. Any other details like independent eateries / restaurants etc. on this route is highly appreciated.
• Who to contact in case of an accident on the highway? : We do see the accident helpline numbers on the highways. However, I found this site that manages those rescue operation on the highways. I would recommend looking at this link : ::: LIFELINE FOUNDATION :::

Cheers,
Samrat

[mithun]

NHAI was not of much use. Another dumb Govt. site !

LIFELINE FOUNDATION is not having support all over India.

In India, it's quite difficult to get info regarding road conditions other than asking others who've travelled recently. But the travel reports are not easily available/not comprehensive.

[hvkumar]

Nothing like reading up and talking to persons who have been there before - in this Forum, there is so much happening anyway. Don't think here is a more reliable update than tbhp.

[snaronikar]

I'amnot sure whether is any website available as of now for giving us the updates on road conditions once in fortnight or once in month. We need to relay on people.

But why do you need it? We have our esteemed BHPian Kumar saab with us?

[hellstar]

Thsi is how i do it , i have a relative who works for the KSRTC i call him up so that he will check the drivers who commute on that route for details on road conditions.

I also sometimes just drive down to Madivala , wait there and check with the incoming bus drivers for the road conditons these guys updates are usually reliable and as fresh as a few hours ago...most of them are friendly and usually eager to talk to you ...

[Sudipto-S-Team]

Sam edp - welcome to team-bhp. I understand this is your first post here. Some of us here generally follow a very simple process - ask a gentleman called HV Kumar. He is a walking road map of India cum database on current road scenario.

[optimist]

"How are the road conditions?"


The single most asked question before a trip!


Replies "Ok", "good", "bad", "10% bad", avoidable etc. may not convey full details.


It is time that we as travelers and enthusiasts come to some basic understandings about the roads!



It would be very nice if someone looking for information got a reply from someone who has traveled recently conveys
Nelamangala – Tumkur = NH4,4L.ExW ,d=60KM,s=140kmph ,Toll, Food=Good, Fuel=good,(dd.mm.yyyy)
meaning
"You can travel on that 4 lane Expressway between Nelamangala and Tumkur, a distance of 60km, at 140 kmph, tolls present, good food and fuel available as on dd.mm.yyyy". Good place to eat would be Pavitra Idly Hotel at Kyathsandra on the highway @ 55km mark( even better would be gps coordinates)


"NHxx, aaa to bbb, 60km, avg speed 10km, full of potholes, best avoided, (dd.mm.yyyy)"


Some broad parameters that this could be based on are below.


Road type : Expressway, National Highway, State Highway, Major Road, ...


Distance : between aaa to bbb = cc km


Lanes : 4 lane, 2 lane, undivided(be careful)



Condition : Excellent, Good, Motorable, Managable, Random killer potholes,

Avoidable …


Avg. Speed: 140kmph, 100kmph, 60kmph, 20 kmph ...


Congestion: heavy congestion during 8am to 10 am, prone to jams, #.


Obstacles : occasional pedestrians, full of buffaloes, passes through city center, high traffic, ghat sections(be careful)...


Amenities :
food/accomodation: good hotels (24x7), OK during daylight, wilderness (nothing available)


Fuel availability: good, far flung, non existent.


Emergency facilities …


any others that bhpians might think of.


Planning often goes haywire when based on distance and expected speed. I have been through this hell and would like to work towards better information availability & correctness.


Examples which could have been avoided if the conditions were known beforehand:


# NH17 in goa was good but narrow undivided 2 lane 60' road. Planned speed=80-100kmph, achieved 45 kmph. Result : late for lunch, lost time.


Udupi to Bangalore via Dharmasthala, to avoid the Sakleshpur horror ( 60 Km at 5-10 kmph), detoured via Ujre-Charmadi-Belur-Hassan. It would have been wise if we had something to eat before we left at 7:40 PM. Having no idea of the Charmadi ghats, driving at 9pm – 11pm in this stretch was a bit worrying. Got virtually nothing to eat till after Hassan at 00:30 AM at 1 dhaba. Worst of all, in pitch darkness, driving through the ghats, there were no other vehicles for reassurance for kilometers, let alone someone to ask directions. I very much thank* “Google maps” but curse the cell networks for not being always available.
*In Charmadi ghats at 11pm, at some hairpin turns, the maps said go straight but there was a huge drop.



I guess similar situations would have been faced by others also. It would be my greatest satisfaction if something constructive comes out of this.


Thanks to all whose reviews, travelogues, I referred to before my recent trip.


optimist

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[anainar]

Optimist,

There are travel logs maintained by people. HVK has one. Ramkya has one. I use them as guides. I used HVK's log for my travel and may be I will update them with my data as well as I have started maintaining my log after looking at the efforts put by them to make life easy for other travellers. I stayed at a hotel listed by him in Surat. If avid travellers compile such data it will be a wealth of information.

I frequent NH4 almost once a month, driving all by myself and know the road. I do make it a point to reply if there are queries on that road. If I travel in unknown road to me, I ask and for sure there are people in this forum who reply. So, there is no substitute to asking but. Then there are travelogues by peple. This is also a great way to know about road conditions, places of stay etc.

If you ask is there a standard way, I think no. May be some one can prepare one and all of us can pitch in.

Nainar

[optimist]

Originally Posted by anainar

I frequent NH4 almost once a month, driving all by myself and know the road. I do make it a point to reply if there are queries on that road.
<snip>

If you ask is there a standard way, I think no. May be some one can prepare one and all of us can pitch in.

Nainar

You may know the road and answer but you do have to see a question to answer. Someone who does not have the ability to post may also be looking.
If we can manage a section of parked threads on popular routes, eg. NH48, SH's, maybe people who have traveled recently on sections of that can update the condition based on a standard format, with images if any, answering the points which i thought mattered in my previous post in this thread.
optimist