[cool_dube]

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

Odo - 918 km Onwards - Extremely Bad Road...
Odo - 933 - Good road starts...

Odo - 969 km - Bad road starts...
Odo - 992 km - Good roads...

This means a total of 15+23 = 35 km of roads are VERY bad.

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

I am not going to take the same route to return to Bangalore. Will post an update after finalizing the route. I will be starting from Allahabad on 1st or 2nd Jan'15.

Did you finalize anything yet?

[Thumping Soul]

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

I am not going to take the same route to return to Bangalore. Will post an update after finalizing the route. I will be starting from Allahabad on 1st or 2nd Jan'15.

I would suggest you to take the Kolkata - Bbsr - Vizag - Nellore - Tirupati - Bangalore route. I had done the same route B'lore - Hyd - Nagpur - Rewa - Varanasi - Patna in Oct'11 and the roads were in much more bad condition then. I had then returned via Kolkata and it was super fast. You can easily maintain avg speed of 80-100kph through majority of the route, except the OR-AP border and AP-KA border.

Even I'm starting my journey today (24th December) evening from Bangalore and destination being Nagpur. Planning to take a night halt in Hyderabad and start over early tomorrow (25th December) morning for Nagpur.

[nishantbhatia84]

Hello everyone!
I'm doing a solo road trip from Mumbai to Jaisalmer starting 4th Jan 2015 and have a few questions about the road conditions:
1. Is the traffic situation on the Narmada bridge at Baruch resolved or do I still need to take the old bridge through the city?
2. How are the roads from Ahmedabad - Mehsana - Palanpur?

[BlackBerry]

Originally Posted by cool_dube

This means a total of 15+23 = 35 km of roads are VERY bad.



Did you finalize anything yet?

Yes, that's about 35 KM (as recorded by my son) and I think it's little more than that, about 40 km but those 40 kms had drained me fully they are that bad. I will never take that route. I am looking for an alternate route even if narrow lane to be able to bypass that stretch.

For my return journey, I am considering the following options.
(i) Allahabad -> Kanpur -> Jhansi -> and then come down to Nagpur via Sagar. But I have to find an alternate route from Nagpur to Adilabad that is atleast motorable.

(ii-a) Allahabad -> Kanpur-> Jhansi->Sagar->Bhopal->Indore-> Dhule-> Aurangabad->Solapur->Bijapur and further down in Karnataka
(ii-b) ... Dhule->Nashik->Pune->Belgaum and further down in Karnataka

I would prefer (i) if I get an alternative to the bad stretch between Adilabad and Nagpur

Option (ii) is quite long and will require two night halts. Most probably I will take one of these options (a or b) if I cannot do (i). Have to find good hotels for night stay. Will be leaving Allahabad on 1st Jan. Mornings are very cold and foggy and I don't think I can hit the highway before 11 or 12 noon. so driving time is reduced drastically. But once I leave this belt (cold belt), I expect more driving time.
--------------------------
I have been cautioned against taking routes through Chitrakoot Dham. This is dacoit-prone and may be risky during early morning/evening.

Originally Posted by Thumping Soul

I would suggest you to take the Kolkata - Bbsr - Vizag - Nellore - Tirupati - Bangalore route. I had done the same route B'lore - Hyd - Nagpur - Rewa - Varanasi - Patna in Oct'11 and the roads were in much more bad condition then. I had then returned via Kolkata and it was super fast. You can easily maintain avg speed of 80-100kph through majority of the route, except the OR-AP border and AP-KA border.

Even I'm starting my journey today (24th December) evening from Bangalore and destination being Nagpur. Planning to take a night halt in Hyderabad and start over early tomorrow (25th December) morning for Nagpur.

Good luck with your journey. Let me know if you found an alternative to the bad stretch between Adilabad and Nagpur. It is an important information and I would appreciate if you can update your experience by this weekend as I have to book hotels if I take other routes.

[KSM-Vtec]

Hi Guys any update on the Mumbai-Alibag-Kashid-Indapur-Mahabaleshwar road condition? NH17/66

Is it decent enough to cover on superbikes?

[cool_dube]

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

Yes, that's about 35 KM (as recorded by my son) and I think it's little more than that, about 40 km but those 40 kms had drained me fully they are that bad. I will never take that route

Thanks! Anyways, I am no longer driving down to NGP but flying, primarily due to scarcity of time. Hopefully by the time I plan to drive this stretch next time, the roads would have been done up.

As for the alternate to the Hinganghat-Adilabad stretch, you can try the route via Jamb (this is where you get off the NH7) - Warora - Wani. This route is mining country so you can expect a lot of truck traffic and roads are not all that great but will be some respite from the pathetic stretch on NH7.

Wish you a safe journey back. Take care...

[Thumping Soul]

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

Good luck with your journey. Let me know if you found an alternative to the bad stretch between Adilabad and Nagpur. It is an important information and I would appreciate if you can update your experience by this weekend as I have to book hotels if I take other routes.

Here's the update.

I started from my home in HSR Layout, Bangalore at 5.30am on 25th December'14. Bangalore - Hyderabad was super fast, was able to cross-over Hyderabad by 12pm and then stopped for lunch at a hotel around 2.30pm. Reached Nagpur at approx 10pm.

It was all fine upto Adilabad and the real horror started just after Adilabad. In total its approx 55kms of bad roads in two stretches, the 1st one being approx 35kms, followed by a 30km stretch of good roads and then 20kms of bad roads again until the turn towards Booti Bori. This overall stretch of 90kms (55km bad + 30km good) took almost 2.5hrs on my Punto, with 4 under-body scratches. The worst part being i was doing this stretch after it went dark.

Even i'm considering an alternative route, the one through Chandrapur - Ballarshah. But again wary of the mining region and the associated truck traffic.

[BlackBerry]

Originally Posted by Thumping Soul

Here's the update.

I started from my home in HSR Layout, Bangalore at 5.30am on 25th December'14. Bangalore - Hyderabad was super fast, was able to cross-over Hyderabad by 12pm and then stopped for lunch at a hotel around 2.30pm. Reached Nagpur at approx 10pm.

Even i'm considering an alternative route, the one through Chandrapur - Ballarshah. But again wary of the mining region and the associated truck traffic.

Thanks. How is the road condition. Is it good for cars? any idea on the Jamb-warora-wani route, I am seriously considering this route. I have no issues with driving as long as my car does not get damaged. Since I reached Allahabad, my car has visited service station twice for an issue (severe abuse due to bad stretch).

[jkrishnakj]

Originally Posted by nishantbhatia84

Hello everyone!
I'm doing a solo road trip from Mumbai to Jaisalmer starting 4th Jan 2015 and have a few questions about the road conditions:
1. Is the traffic situation on the Narmada bridge at Baruch resolved or do I still need to take the old bridge through the city?
2. How are the roads from Ahmedabad - Mehsana - Palanpur?

Hi Nishant

I took the Narmada bridge on the 26th - and found that completely cluttered with massive jams, however, the left most lane said "Cars Only" and surprisingly, none of the trucks had ventured there, and we could sail through, without much of hassles. But the sight of so many trucks and lanes and lanes of bumper to bumper traffic got me a little scared - and this was around 6.00 PM or so, when I crossed the bridge.

I will be at Jaisalmer tomorrow, and am hoping for a good drive between Jodhpur-Jaisalmer tomorrow.

[nishantbhatia84]

Originally Posted by jkrishnakj

Hi Nishant

I took the Narmada bridge on the 26th - and found that completely cluttered with massive jams, however, the left most lane said "Cars Only" and surprisingly, none of the trucks had ventured there, and we could sail through, without much of hassles. But the sight of so many trucks and lanes and lanes of bumper to bumper traffic got me a little scared - and this was around 6.00 PM or so, when I crossed the bridge.

I will be at Jaisalmer tomorrow, and am hoping for a good drive between Jodhpur-Jaisalmer tomorrow.

The left most lane reserved for cars is on the bridge is it? What about the approach road till the bridge?
Also, how much time did it take you to reach ahmedabad? I'm planning on doing Mumbai to Jaisalmer if possible.

[Vipin Kumar]

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

Thanks. How is the road condition. Is it good for cars? any idea on the Jamb-warora-wani route, I am seriously considering this route. I have no issues with driving as long as my car does not get damaged. Since I reached Allahabad, my car has visited service station twice for an issue (severe abuse due to bad stretch).

Though there are some roundabout mining area routes, I always preferred to stick to the Hinganghat - Pandharkhwada -Pipperwada - Adilabad bad patch only. It is almost 20 + 20 kms bad patch, with a 30 kms smooth surface in between. I generally take a reasonable 3 hours so that my vehicle remains intact. When I was on this section first time, I think I was a little impatient and got my car's steering alignment out. The rest of the drive up to Hyderabad was not that fun. We need to be wary about our own tendency to be impatient on bad patches, that is all. Otherwise, it is not that long a distance (40 kms).

Plus, better to drive here during day light. You need to cross both the patches before twilight.

Vipin.

[Thumping Soul]

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

Thanks. How is the road condition. Is it good for cars? any idea on the Jamb-warora-wani route, I am seriously considering this route. I have no issues with driving as long as my car does not get damaged. Since I reached Allahabad, my car has visited service station twice for an issue (severe abuse due to bad stretch).

Originally Posted by Vipin Kumar

Though there are some roundabout mining area routes, I always preferred to stick to the Hinganghat - Pandharkhwada -Pipperwada - Adilabad bad patch only. It is almost 20 + 20 kms bad patch, with a 30 kms smooth surface in between. I generally take a reasonable 3 hours so that my vehicle remains intact. When I was on this section first time, I think I was a little impatient and got my car's steering alignment out. The rest of the drive up to Hyderabad was not that fun. We need to be wary about our own tendency to be impatient on bad patches, that is all. Otherwise, it is not that long a distance (40 kms).

Plus, better to drive here during day light. You need to cross both the patches before twilight.

Vipin.

I had a loong drive yesterday from Nagpur to Bangalore. I decided to take the Jamb-Warora-Wani route and had to get back to NH7 at Pandharkawada. This detour approx 180kms only allowed me to overcome the 20km bad stretch around Hinghanghat. I still had to navigate the next 30kms of bad roads before reaching the AP border. And the route to Bori (closer to AP border) is in shambles as per the locales.

So, it is advised that keep time on hand and cover this route in day light. No point in diverting to any other route. Only makes it a longer drive. No major benefit out of it.

I would be posting a detailed log about my drive soon.

Thanks
Saurav

[BlackBerry]

Originally Posted by Thumping Soul

I had a loong drive yesterday from Nagpur to Bangalore. I decided to take the Jamb-Warora-Wani route and had to get back to NH7 at Pandharkawada. This detour approx 180kms only allowed me to overcome the 20km bad stretch around Hinghanghat. I still had to navigate the next 30kms of bad roads before reaching the AP border. And the route to Bori (closer to AP border) is in shambles as per the locales.

So, it is advised that keep time on hand and cover this route in day light. No point in diverting to any other route. Only makes it a longer drive. No major benefit out of it.

I would be posting a detailed log about my drive soon.

Thanks
Saurav

Thanks mate for the update. Met NH7 at Pandarkhwada, was it planned already or planned en-route? I see another route to meet the NH7 just before Adilabad. This one goes straight down from Wani and meets another road forming a T from where if you take a right you should be meeting NH7 just before Adilabad. Any idea if this is an option, to avoid the 30 km of bad stretch near Pandarkhwada?
I am just trying to see if we have a better road options (just today I paid a bill of 10k to replace the turbocharger hose in my car, this was leaking and there was power drop, not sure if it's due to a damage due to severe off-roading)

I am setting out on 1st Jan from Allahabad. will be crossing this dreaded stretch on 2nd. Let me know if you have any suggestion meanwhile.

Also, could you tell me the time it took you to cover the the 180km detour and what was the average speed. Did you notice any good petrol pumps and restaurants on this stretch or is it too much to expect in the country side road.

What time did you start at Nagpur and what time did you reach Pandharkhwada? I am asking this because I will be coming from Sagar (first night halt for me) and I have to cover about 400km before reaching Nagpur and I am trying to see if I will be crossing this stretch during the day time i.e. before dark. Did you see other private cars in this section, I didn't quite see any during my onward journey.

[Thumping Soul]

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

Thanks mate for the update. Met NH7 at Pandarkhwada, was it planned already or planned en-route? I see another route to meet the NH7 just before Adilabad. This one goes straight down from Wani and meets another road forming a T from where if you take a right you should be meeting NH7 just before Adilabad. Any idea if this is an option, to avoid the 30 km of bad stretch near Pandarkhwada?
I am just trying to see if we have a better road options (just today I paid a bill of 10k to replace the turbocharger hose in my car, this was leaking and there was power drop, not sure if it's due to a damage due to severe off-roading)

I had initially planned to join NH7 at Bori, where the AP border starts alongwith 4-lane roads. I did ask one of the truck drivers at a petrol pump in Wani. He recommended to join NH7 through MSH6 at Karanji, just before Pandharkhwada and bear with the 30km bad stretch of NH7 since the other route to Pandharkhwada and Bori is bad or worse than the bad stretches on NH7.

Originally Posted by BlackBerry

Also, could you tell me the time it took you to cover the the 180km detour and what was the average speed. Did you notice any good petrol pumps and restaurants on this stretch or is it too much to expect in the country side road.

What time did you start at Nagpur and what time did you reach Pandharkhwada? I am asking this because I will be coming from Sagar (first night halt for me) and I have to cover about 400km before reaching Nagpur and I am trying to see if I will be crossing this stretch during the day time i.e. before dark. Did you see other private cars in this section, I didn't quite see any during my onward journey.

I started from my in-law's home in Gorewada, Nagpur at 6am and was at Pandharkhwada at 8.45am. So approx 3hrs. I would still recommend riding through the bad-section from Nagpur to Adilabad, instead of taking this route. But if you plan to call it a day at Hyderabad, it should be fine.

The roads upto Warora is 4-laned with good surface and you can maintain good speeds. Beyond Warora you would need to exit from this highway to your right to take a fly-over to join the road to Wani. This is a 2-lane stretch with good surface and you can easily maintain 70-80kph comfortably, but be careful of villagers & cattle straying on the roads.

I did saw quite a good amount of private car traffic upto Warora and Manjhri WCL colony (beyond Warora), but it gradually thinned out beyond Wani.

This stretch has good nos. of petrol pumps, but I would recommend topping up at the petrol pump at Jamb (on the left side) or else at Wani. But very few food joints and no restaurants.

[BlackBerry]

Originally Posted by Vipin Kumar

Though there are some roundabout mining area routes, I always preferred to stick to the Hinganghat - Pandharkhwada -Pipperwada - Adilabad bad patch only. It is almost 20 + 20 kms bad patch, with a 30 kms smooth surface in between. I generally take a reasonable 3 hours so that my vehicle remains intact. When I was on this section first time, I think I was a little impatient and got my car's steering alignment out. The rest of the drive up to Hyderabad was not that fun. We need to be wary about our own tendency to be impatient on bad patches, that is all. Otherwise, it is not that long a distance (40 kms).

Plus, better to drive here during day light. You need to cross both the patches before twilight.

Vipin.

You are right about getting impatient to cross the bad roads. This was the case with me too and I think it's because I had a decent drive of about 800 km before reaching this section and also because it was getting dark and there were no other private cars visible. In fact on several occasions there were no vehicles visible before/behind me making me try to get past this road fast. Thanks for this advice.