[nikesh]

Hi Friends,

I am planning to travel alone(single driver) from Pune to Muzaffarpur(Bihar) in 26th January weekend. Need help on the best route and the approximate time of travel. This will help me book hotels for night halt. Will return back in a week's time. I will be driving my VW Vento TDI(22000 kms driven).

I did drive from Pune to Delhi in October last year alone and traveled back again in a week's time and accustomed now for long road travel.

Many Thanks for the advice.

Regards,
Nikesh

[mayankjha1806]

Google maps recommends three routs one of them is NH7 (1820 Kms) looks best to me as it does not pass through Indore-Devas-Jhansi route.

About NH7 i can vouch for decent to good quality roads till Jabalpur (Pune-Akola-Amravati-Nagpur-Jabalpur), Beyond Jabalpur (Katni-Satna-Allahabad) i am not too sure, but looking back many years do expect it to be bad.

No Clue of roads beyond Allahabad.

Most of the routes suggested are ~1900 Kms, if you get decent roads you could easily do a 800+Kms a driving day so plan overnight stops accordingly. Best case scenario 1 night hault (or maybe 2 nights depending on road conditions beyond Jabalpur)

[nikesh]

Originally Posted by mayankjha1806

Google maps recommends three routs one of them is NH7 (1820 Kms) looks best to me as it does not pass through Indore-Devas-Jhansi route.

About NH7 i can vouch for decent to good quality roads till Jabalpur (Pune-Akola-Amravati-Nagpur-Jabalpur), Beyond Jabalpur (Katni-Satna-Allahabad) i am not too sure, but looking back many years do expect it to be bad.

No Clue of roads beyond Allahabad.

Most of the routes suggested are ~1900 Kms, if you get decent roads you could easily do a 800+Kms a driving day so plan overnight stops accordingly. Best case scenario 1 night hault (or maybe 2 nights depending on road conditions beyond Jabalpur)

Thanks for the response.
I am planning to take the below route -
Pune - Ahmednagar - Aurangabad - Akola - Amravati - Nagpur - Jabalpur - Katni - Satna - Rewa - Lalganj - Mirzapur - Bakiabad - Mughalsarai - Buxer - Chapra - Muzaffarpur

Need inputs -
1) If this is the most appropriate route? I am ok to travel few kilometres more if I can get cleaner road where I can go faster rather than struggling at low speeds on a shorter route.
2) Are there are bottlenecks in route between Mughalsarai - Buxer - Chapra and Muzaffarpur?

Thanks.

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by nikesh

2) Are there are bottlenecks in route between Mughalsarai - Buxer - Chapra and Muzaffarpur?

Thanks.

Hi!

Can't precisely help with your route chart, but expect traffic (maddening) when passing through these towns if there are no bye-pass.

Please be very patient & let others pass. And yes, Muz's traffic & roads are still the same.

[hvkumar]

I would avoid NH7 since it is in very bad shape currently.

Instead, since you have also driven Pune-Delhi, take the following route:

Pune-New Bombay/Thane-Vapi-Surat-Ankleshwar/Bharuch-Baroda-Ahmedabad-Himmatnagar-Udaipur-Chittorgarh-Kota-Shivpuri-Jhansi-Orai-Bhognipur-Pukharayan CRossing-Kanpur-Unnao-Lucknow-Barabanki-Faizabad/Ayodhya-Gorakhpur-Kushinagar-Gopalganj-Muzaffarpur.

This will give you 4-laned roads all the way with some minor sections still incomplete.

Expect traffic congestion in New Bombay/Thane, Ankleshwar/Bharuch, Orai, Kanpur, Lucknow, Gorakhpur.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Expect traffic congestion in New Bombay/Thane, Ankleshwar/Bharuch, Orai, Kanpur, Lucknow, Gorakhpur.

How about taking NH3 till Mhow via Nasik and then latching on to 4L via Lebad.Ratlam Kota and there on to Jhansi.
That way, he does not need to take the busy Mumbai/AMD section.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by ampere

How about taking NH3 till Mhow via Nasik and then latching on to 4L via Lebad.Ratlam Kota and there on to Jhansi.
That way, he does not need to take the busy Mumbai/AMD section.

That is also a good idea. Difference will lie in the time of the day - early mornings out of Pune through either route will mean faster speeds through congested corridors like Bombay/Thane and/ or Pune-Chakan.

[nikesh]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

That is also a good idea. Difference will lie in the time of the day - early mornings out of Pune through either route will mean faster speeds through congested corridors like Bombay/Thane and/ or Pune-Chakan.

Thanks a lot everyone for the suggestions. As the day of travel is one week from now so have made up my mind that will go via aurangabad-akola-amravati-nagpur-jabalpur. Plan to have first night stay at jabalpur starting 4 AM from Pune. The road distance from Jabalpur to Muzaffarpur is around 800 kms which I have been adviced by all of you is not possible in one day(stretched). So can plan to stay at varanasi depending upon the road condition(drving speed) and traffic.

Kumar sir,
I know you have adviced on not so good road condition between jabalpur and varanasi butis that so bad that it has big holes and you cant even drive at 70 kmph? I know what I am trying to attemp might be too ambitious but need your help here to get this going smooth I will be travelling alone and the car is Vento TDI. GPRS has been fitted in now for any help on route diversions required mid-way. Please guide to get this done. I want to do it

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by nikesh

Thanks a lot everyone for the suggestions. As the day of travel is one week from now so have made up my mind that will go via aurangabad-akola-amravati-nagpur-jabalpur. Plan to have first night stay at jabalpur starting 4 AM from Pune. The road distance from Jabalpur to Muzaffarpur is around 800 kms which I have been adviced by all of you is not possible in one day(stretched). So can plan to stay at varanasi depending upon the road condition(drving speed) and traffic.

Kumar sir,
I know you have adviced on not so good road condition between jabalpur and varanasi butis that so bad that it has big holes and you cant even drive at 70 kmph? I know what I am trying to attemp might be too ambitious but need your help here to get this going smooth I will be travelling alone and the car is Vento TDI. GPRS has been fitted in now for any help on route diversions required mid-way. Please guide to get this done. I want to do it

Why do you want to go via Akola? Why not go via Mehkar, Karanja, Phulgaon to Wardha & Nagpur?

The state of NH7 between MH border & Seoni and Jabalpur & Katni is so bad that even a SUV cannot travel over 20 kmph. For a Vento, it will be the worst battering it has ever got

[nikesh]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Why do you want to go via Akola? Why not go via Mehkar, Karanja, Phulgaon to Wardha & Nagpur?

The state of NH7 between MH border & Seoni and Jabalpur & Katni is so bad that even a SUV cannot travel over 20 kmph. For a Vento, it will be the worst battering it has ever got

Thank you sir for the prompt reply. I am totally puzzled now on what route should I take. Based on what's the road condition post Nagpur to Jabalpur its not wise to take this route. So I am left with the two options suggested by you earlier -

Option 1 : Pune - Mumbai - vadodara - Ahmedabad - Udaipur - Kota - Jhansi - Kanpur - Varanasi - .....

Option 2 : Pune - Indore - Jhansi - Kanpur - allahabad - varanasi

Any other option

I am getting confused with all these routes. Please help so that I can get the night bookings done in advance. Being 26th Jan weekend I am expecting hotel rush as well.

Thanks for the help.

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by nikesh

Thank you sir for the prompt reply. I am totally puzzled now on what route should I take. Based on what's the road condition post Nagpur to Jabalpur its not wise to take this route. So I am left with the two options suggested by you earlier -

Option 1 : Pune - Mumbai - vadodara - Ahmedabad - Udaipur - Kota - Jhansi - Kanpur - Varanasi - .....

Option 2 : Pune - Indore - Jhansi - Kanpur - allahabad - varanasi

Any other option

I am getting confused with all these routes. Please help so that I can get the night bookings done in advance. Being 26th Jan weekend I am expecting hotel rush as well.

Thanks for the help.

You can avoid most of the bad sections of NH7 by taking the following route:

Nagpur-Chhindwara-Seoni-Kanha-Dindori-Umariya-Maihar-Rewa-Allahabad-Varanasi

If you want to avoid the Nagpur-Jabalpur sector, then you can do the East West Corridor drive as follows:

Pune-Bombay-Surat-Baroda-Ahmedabad-Udaipur-Chittorgarh-KOta-Jhansi-Kanpur-Lucknow-Ayodhya-Gorakhpur-Kushalnagar-Muzaffarpur

[BoneCollector]

Originally Posted by nikesh

Hi Friends,

I am planning to travel alone(single driver) from Pune to Muzaffarpur(Bihar) in 26th January weekend.

Good to know someone who belongs/is related to this part of the world!

Originally Posted by ampere

How about taking NH3 till Mhow via Nasik and then latching on to 4L via Lebad.Ratlam Kota and there on to Jhansi.
That way, he does not need to take the busy Mumbai/AMD section.

Originally Posted by nikesh

Thank you sir for the prompt reply. I am totally puzzled now on what route should I take. Based on what's the road condition post Nagpur to Jabalpur its not wise to take this route. So I am left with the two options suggested by you earlier -

Option 1 : Pune - Mumbai - vadodara - Ahmedabad - Udaipur - Kota - Jhansi - Kanpur - Varanasi - .....

Option 2 : Pune - Indore - Jhansi - Kanpur - allahabad - varanasi

Any other option

I am getting confused with all these routes. Please help so that I can get the night bookings done in advance. Being 26th Jan weekend I am expecting hotel rush as well.

Thanks for the help.

I've done the Mhow-Mumbai via Shirdi in 2008 June in an Alto via and it was blazing hot at that time.To add to it,it was a black Alto and we got stuck in traffic jams on a few occasions.We drove through on NH3 till Malegaon and then took a left for Shirdi.The road was fine except at a few places where they were widening it.Overall it was fine.We took about 10hrs with 2 half an hour stops in between from Mhow to Shirdi.Earlier,on 2 occasions,our car was driven back from Mhow to Muzaffarpur by drivers and they did the stretch in 29 hrs in the Alto.So time depends on how you are driving.
Now the roads,well i found NH3 to be good, albeit with heavy traffic.

My suggestion will be to hit NH3 from Pune and the continue with it till Indore.From there,either you can continue on NH3 or take the route as suggested by ampere.Once you reach Jhansi,from there to Kanpur via Orai is little rough patch(last status of about 6 months back).From Kanpur,you can take NH2 and it'll be a breeze.Then continue on NH2 till Mohania(via Allahabad-Varanasi).From Mohania,take NH30 to Patna,it'll have heavy traffic but road is fine.And i guess from Patna,you might be aware of the road.( http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/street...ndhi-setu.html ). Once at Hajipur,you must take the SH 49 via Mahua.Till Mahua it'll be a wide road but from Mahua,once you start towards Muzaffarpur,road will be narrow but very smooth.Reason for avoiding the main route-NH77 is that its undergoing four-laning so it has some real bad patches.The other one via Lalganj has a bridge under construction so i think its still not motorable.I feel you'll have more difficulties near Muzaffarpur rather than anywhere else.

Originally Posted by hvkumar

You can avoid most of the bad sections of NH7 by taking the following route:

Nagpur-Chhindwara-Seoni-Kanha-Dindori-Umariya-Maihar-Rewa-Allahabad-Varanasi

If you want to avoid the Nagpur-Jabalpur sector, then you can do the East West Corridor drive as follows:

Pune-Bombay-Surat-Baroda-Ahmedabad-Udaipur-Chittorgarh-KOta-Jhansi-Kanpur-Lucknow-Ayodhya-Gorakhpur-Kushalnagar-Muzaffarpur

The route from Kanpur via Lucknow-Ayodhya is fine only till Ayodhya.( http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...nh28-24-a.html ) You and especially your car will have tough time on the stretch from short of Gorakhpur to near Pipra-kothi.

Originally Posted by nikesh

I will be travelling alone and the car is Vento TDI. GPRS has been fitted in now for any help on route diversions required mid-way. Please guide to get this done. I want to do it

Which mobile network will you be using?I'll suggest that you take 2 different sets with atleast one having a 3G connection of BSNL,it helps a lot if your phone has GPS and google maps.Dont forget to keep phone chargers or you can also take a DC-AC converter( Belkin : AC Anywhere + USB port + 200W ). I bought it for INR 1600/-,its very handy.



Hope this helps.Best of luck with your journey.By the way,Volkswagen has set shop at Patna.(Sorry for haphazard snaps,i uploaded them in sequence but it got jumbled up.)

Originally Posted by hvkumar

I am told that the entire stretch is fine, except for the (lack of) Gorakhpur bypass, you have to tackle traffic jams inside the town.

There is no Gorakhpur bypass still.The roads beyond Pipra-Kothi through Gopalganj are in very pathetic state.My car got scraped at one place,Vento will have a real tough time.This route is best to be avoided.My uncle took this route to Varanasi and it took him almost 12hrs to reach Varanasi from Muzaffarpur.Deplorable condition i must say.(sorry for adding your post in previous post,just following the rules.)

[hvkumar]

Originally Posted by BoneCollector

I've done the Mhow-Mumbai via Shirdi in 2008 June in an Alto via and it was blazing hot at that time.To add to it,it was a black Alto and we got stuck in traffic jams on a few occasions.We drove through on NH3 till Malegaon and then took a left for Shirdi.The road was fine except at a few places where they were widening it.Overall it was fine.We took about 10hrs with 2 half an hour stops in between from Mhow to Shirdi.Earlier,on 2 occasions,our car was driven back from Mhow to Muzaffarpur by drivers and they did the stretch in 29 hrs in the Alto.So time depends on how you are driving.
Now the roads,well i found NH3 to be good, albeit with heavy traffic.

Now with the road fully widened from a little beyond Nashik till Dhule, there are no problems on this road. MP roads are also excellent till Indore.

Once you reach Jhansi,from there to Kanpur via Orai is little rough patch(last status of about 6 months back).From Kanpur,you can take NH2 and it'll be a breeze.

Except for Orai town (where bypass is incomplete), rest of the route is fine, barring a few kms of rough road.

The route from Kanpur via Lucknow-Ayodhya is fine only till Ayodhya.( http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/route-...nh28-24-a.html ) You and especially your car will have tough time on the stretch from short of Gorakhpur to near Pipra-kothi.

I am told that the entire stretch is fine, except for the (lack of) Gorakhpur bypass, you have to tackle traffic jams inside the town.

[nikesh]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Now with the road fully widened from a little beyond Nashik till Dhule, there are no problems on this road. MP roads are also excellent till Indore.



Except for Orai town (where bypass is incomplete), rest of the route is fine, barring a few kms of rough road.




I am told that the entire stretch is fine, except for the (lack of) Gorakhpur bypass, you have to tackle traffic jams inside the town.

Thank you very much Kumar sir and bonecollector for the valuable inputs

So, the route is final now -
Pune/Indore - 617
Indore/Jhansi - 475
Jhansi/Patna - 771
Patna/Muzaffarpur - 70

Total Distance to be travelled - 1933 kms

I will make an attempt to do first night halt at Jhansi considering that I leave 4 AM from Pune. Next day can stretch from Jhansi To Patna for next night halt and then to Muzaffarpur the third day morning.

By your experience -
1) Do you see any more changes I should do to the above plan?
2) Also please suggest average speed I should maintain on below stretches?
Indore/Jhansi?
Jhansi/Patna?

Thank you once again !!!!

[longford]

two cents. If I were to do this, I would stick to what HVKumar has suggested.
Pune-Bombay-Surat-Baroda-Ahmedabad-Udaipur-Chittorgarh-KOta-Jhansi-Kanpur-Lucknow-Ayodhya-Gorakhpur-Kushalnagar-Muzaffarpur

This route albeit longer but will ensure you great roads and will give you more speed and can make all the difference between 1 halt and 2 halts. Would also second HVK's suggestion on the Ayodhya-Gorakhpur mode as it runs via the EW corridor and looks completed.

Also, ref to the NHAI update on the GQ and NS and EW corridors at this link