Current road conditions between Siliguri and Guwahati ?

[hvkumar]

Thanks for the feedback, Sibi.

The Boxirhat jams are notorious, that is why most today take the detour through the village to avoid the checkpost. I also caution anyone driving on this stretch on this short cut since I don't think any improvement is going to happen soon.
How was the Cooch behar-Alipurduar road?
The Alipurduar-Hashimara sector is bad because of the road widening? How fast is work going on there?
The maps are all jumbled up in the Hashimara-Sevoke sector, the highways are all over the place! Best to take the route via Birpara, Chalasa, Mal Bazaar, etc.
The Teesta-Ghoom-Darjeeling road is one of the best. Shocked to know that the main road to Darjeeling from Siliguri is in a bad shape. Did you ascertain how the alternative roads are - via Mirik and Pankhabari?

[Sutripta]

Hi,
Dhupguri - Falakata has been a mess for quite sometime. But then NH31 has a broken bridge (just off Telepara) which causes jams. Your choice of devil and the deep.

Nowadays I prefer Srirampur to Boxirhat because Boxirhat seems to be perennially jammed, Srirampur only sometimes. All the multiaxle vehicles seem to be taking the Boxirhat route nowadays.

As I keep on telling people, as a tourist in the NE, do not deviate too much from the main roads, ask for directions at bus stops, and do not put too much faith in maps.

Regards
Sutripta

[navan49]

I am a frequent traveller between Siliguri and Alipur. This road never improve. Though it is called as NH,it is not upto the quality of the State Highways of other states. From Jalpaiguri to Poolbhari very often we come across Pat holes which may scratch the under Chasis the condition is worse between Birpara and Hasimara. Beyond that upto Alipur junction one two places there are big potholes. Seems beyond Shrirampur the road is good.

[J.Ravi]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

Nowadays I prefer Srirampur to Boxirhat because Boxirhat seems to be perennially jammed, Srirampur only sometimes.

Any idea about the present state of affairs of the roads between Siliguri and Guwahati? I am planning to test the physical fitness of my Linea on these roads. Which one should I take, Bongaigaon or Boxirhat?

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

Any idea about the present state of affairs of the roads between Siliguri and Guwahati? I am planning to test the physical fitness of my Linea on these roads. Which one should I take, Bongaigaon or Boxirhat?

Bongaigaon route is to be avoided at any cost because of the mess of road widening.
The Cooch Behar route is better, although that also suffers from some bad sections in WB

[J.Ravi]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

The Cooch Behar route is better, although that also suffers from some bad sections in WB

Thanks a lot for prompt response, hvkumar. Can I take this route: Siliguri>Coronation Bridge>Alipurduar>Boxirhat>Jogighopa>Guwahati? In that route, any idea of diversions to escape from the perennial km-long traffic jam at the Boxirhat CP?

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

Thanks a lot for prompt response, hvkumar. Can I take this route: Siliguri>Coronation Bridge>Alipurduar>Boxirhat>Jogighopa>Guwahati? In that route, any idea of diversions to escape from the perennial km-long traffic jam at the Boxirhat CP?

No, you do not need to go that way at all. Here is the route:
Siliguri-Fulbari-Mainaguri-Drupaguri-Falakata-Cooch Behar-Tufanganj-Boxirhat-Gauripur-North Salamara-Jogikoppa-Dudnai-Boko-Guwahati

You can track this route (in reverse order) in the attached link, Lines 445-498
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/...S1LSV9xMHI1aVE

Boxirhat - is not that bad, although sometimes you get jammed. There are alternative routes through the village to escape bad jams.

[J.Ravi]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

No, you do not need to go that way at all.

Thanks once again, hvkumar. I selected Siliguri>Coronation Bridge>Alipurduar route because I was told that the roads are good in that stretch.

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Boxirhat - is not that bad, although sometimes you get jammed.

That's a good news. Depends upon my Linea's luck, it seems.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

Thanks once again, hvkumar. I selected Siliguri>Coronation Bridge>Alipurduar route because I was told that the roads are good in that stretch.

At present, Siliguri-Sevoke-Cronation Bridge-Melli Bazaar-Birpara-Alipurduar road is fine, but conditions change. Beyond Alipurduar, road is not good. You can also connect to Cooch behar from Alipurduar via some lovely jungle roads, but that road is also not great.

Please avoid using Navigators in these sections - there are several sub-route options, and I have found them always get the route wrong.

[Sutripta]

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

Any idea about the present state of affairs of the roads between Siliguri and Guwahati? I am planning to test the physical fitness of my Linea on these roads. Which one should I take, Bongaigaon or Boxirhat?

Linea? Stick to Boxirhat - Jogigopa - South Bank (NH37)

SUV, daytime travel - Srirampur.

Regards
Sutripta

[A.G.The Rambler]

What is the best possible route from Siliguri to Guwahati under the present conditions at this point of time? How are road conditions through NH 31C via Bongaigaon?

[J.Ravi]

Originally Posted by A.G.The Rambler

How are road conditions through NH 31C via Bongaigaon?

This was the route I drove from Kolkata to Guwahati on 16/17/18 April 2012. Road widening works were in progress from Bongaigaon to Guwahati. I decided not to take this Bongaigaon route for the return journey. So, I drove on this route from Shillong to Phuentsholing via Goalpara bypass on 24 April 2012, which was better than the route via Bongaigaon.

[A.G.The Rambler]

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

This was the route I drove from Kolkata to Guwahati on 16/17/18 April 2012. Road widening works were in progress from Bongaigaon to Guwahati. I decided not to take this Bongaigaon route for the return journey. So, I drove on this route from Shillong to Phuentsholing via Goalpara bypass on 24 April 2012, which was better than the route via Bongaigaon.

How long did it take you on both the routes?

[J.Ravi]

Originally Posted by A.G.The Rambler

How long did it take you on both the routes?

During the onward journey, we crossed Siliguri bypass in the afternoon. Bad roads greeted us at Falakatta, Cooch Bihar and Tufanganj [reached by 7 pm]. Road conditions improved after entering Assam. We had our dinner at a road-side dhaba at Chaper, Assam. Later, my MapMyIndia Lx130 navigator misguided me and took me via Bongaigaon although I had selected Goalpara bypass as a via point. Road widening works were in progress from Bongaigaon to Guwahati. I decided not to take this Bongaigaon route for the return journey. We reached Ginger Hotels, Guwahati, at 3:00 am on 18 April 2012.

In the return journey, we left our hotel at Shillong at 8:30 am, crossed Guwahati bypass by noon, reached Tufanganj check-post by 7 pm via Goalpara bypass. After wading through bad roads containing ditches, craters, potholes, and what-not near Tufanganj, Cooch Behar and Hasimara, we reached Centennial Hotel 2008 at Phuentsholing, Bhutan by 9:30 pm.

In nutshell, the 2-lane road from Guwahati to Tufanganj via Goalpara bypass comprised very good roads in Assam. The bad roads in West Bengal are inevitable in both the routes.

[A.G.The Rambler]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

At present, Siliguri-Sevoke-Cronation Bridge-Melli Bazaar-Birpara-Alipurduar road is fine, but conditions change. Beyond Alipurduar, road is not good. You can also connect to Cooch behar from Alipurduar via some lovely jungle roads, but that road is also not great.

Please avoid using Navigators in these sections - there are several sub-route options, and I have found them always get the route wrong.

Originally Posted by J.Ravi

During the onward journey, we crossed Siliguri bypass in the afternoon. Bad roads greeted us at Falakatta, Cooch Bihar and Tufanganj [reached by 7 pm]. Road conditions improved after entering Assam. We had our dinner at a road-side dhaba at Chaper, Assam. Later, my MapMyIndia Lx130 navigator misguided me and took me via Bongaigaon although I had selected Goalpara bypass as a via point. Road widening works were in progress from Bongaigaon to Guwahati. I decided not to take this Bongaigaon route for the return journey. We reached Ginger Hotels, Guwahati, at 3:00 am on 18 April 2012.

In the return journey, we left our hotel at Shillong at 8:30 am, crossed Guwahati bypass by noon, reached Tufanganj check-post by 7 pm via Goalpara bypass. After wading through bad roads containing ditches, craters, potholes, and what-not near Tufanganj, Cooch Behar and Hasimara, we reached Centennial Hotel 2008 at Phuentsholing, Bhutan by 9:30 pm.

In nutshell, the 2-lane road from Guwahati to Tufanganj via Goalpara bypass comprised very good roads in Assam. The bad roads in West Bengal are inevitable in both the routes.

Any idea on the recent conditions of Falakata, Cooch Bihar and Tufanganj. Has anything improved in this region?
Is connecting to Cooch behar from Alipurduar a better option? I don't think we need to go through Hashimara to Alipurduar, if i am not mistaken so can avoid the bad stretch at Hashimara. Is the road conditions between Alipurduar to Cooch Behar better than the Falakata stretch?