[sabret00the]

Thanks tachobells for the latest on road conditions.

I'm starting tomorrow morning around the same time (6-7am) and checking in at St.James Court Beach Resort, Pondicherry.

Gmaps is showing me a different route from Vandavasi Makkah Mosque to Marakkanam (SH115 & SH 117) from where I'd be getting onto the ECR till my final destination.
Can anyone tell me the condition of SH115 & SH117? Are these good roads to drive through?
Or Should I continue to drive towards Tindivanam?

[ampere]

Originally Posted by sabret00the

Or Should I continue to drive towards Tindivanam?

You should continue to drive towards Tindivanam. By following what Google suggests, you are missing the beautiful 4-lane from Tindivanam to Pondicherry.

[sabret00the]

Originally Posted by ampere

You should continue to drive towards Tindivanam. By following what Google suggests, you are missing the beautiful 4-lane from Tindivanam to Pondicherry.

Thanks for the prompt reply.

I will continue towards Tindivanam as advised. Could you please advise from where should I take the turn to reach St James Court Beach Resort.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by sabret00the

Thanks for the prompt reply.

I will continue towards Tindivanam as advised. Could you please advise from where should I take the turn to reach St James Court Beach Resort.

I am not sure about that. Any one in the city should be able to guide you.
But looking at maps, what seems most logical is the following:

Route Link

[floyd.bell]

Originally Posted by sabret00the

Thanks for the prompt reply.

I will continue towards Tindivanam as advised. Could you please advise from where should I take the turn to reach St James Court Beach Resort.

Just before the last toll at Pondy, there's a left turn which takes you to Auroville main road. Continue on that road to reach ECR and then your resort. You can avoid going thru the city.

[sabret00the]

I did just that. Will post a detailed report once I'm back. One thing - if you enter Auroville Main Road from Tindivanam side then you will find the Lhs of the road dug up for next 3-4 kms.

[vdiatech]

Hi, Its 01:30 am , I will be leaving for Pondy at 2:15am.
Will be taking the Arcot Cheyar route like last time. Will be there whole of Sat- Sun.

If you see a red KA 41 P reg i10 4**0 ,thats me. Pls signal.

[mooza]

Originally Posted by ampere

You should continue to drive towards Tindivanam. By following what Google suggests, you are missing the beautiful 4-lane from Tindivanam to Pondicherry.

+ 1 to this.

The scenery of the coastal trees and landscape on this last leg of the journey was breathtaking, and was really enjoyed by my family

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by sabret00the

Could you please advise from where should I take the turn to reach St James Court Beach Resort.

Originally Posted by ampere

But looking at maps, what seems most logical is the following:

Sabre, the best route to St. James' Court is not the one mentioned in Ampere's map. Follow this:

- Once past JIPMER, at the first big signal, take a left.
- You'll enter the road which by passes the town
- Keep going till the point where there is the Fathima something-something school on the right
- Take a right from there
- You'll see Hotel Ginger on your right
- Take the left after that
- Once you reach ECR, turn left towards Chennai
- 3-4 km down ECR is St James' Court

According to the map, the by pass is complete, and will take you to ECR if you keep on going straight. The road was built only till the junction where Fathima school is, when i left Pondy in 2009. (I've lived in Pondy from 2003 - 2009)

[sabret00the]

Apologies for the delay in posting. I'm actually putting together a short thread about my account of the whole trip but till that comes through here's my trip log attached for your reference.

Going -> Blr - Pondi via Vellore

Return -> Pondi - Blr via Puducherry Road

[itsmejack]

Has anyone tried this route?

Bangalore->Hoskote->Venkatagirikota->Gudiyattam->Vellore->Arcot->Vandavasi->Melmaruvathur->Marakkanam->EC Road (Pondy)

http://goo.gl/maps/uD3K6

I stay near old madras road. So I am planning to take this route tomorrow. Can anyone comment on the road conditions for this route?

Thanks!

[ampere]

Originally Posted by itsmejack

Has anyone tried this route?

Bangalore->Hoskote->Venkatagirikota->Gudiyattam->Vellore->Arcot->Vandavasi->Melmaruvathur->Marakkanam->EC Road (Pondy)

Many guys have tried alternate versions if this route on their way to Chennai.

Example: Mulbagal-Venkatagiri Kota-Gudiyatam-Vellore

or Mulbagal-Palamaner-Gudiyatam-Vellore.

The easiest I can suggest is:

Drive till Ranipet and come back NH4 towards Vellore cross the bridge on Palar and take to the road to Cheyyar.

But if you want to explore, you can take these interior roads. They are good too.

[shubhamAT]

Hi Guys,

I just completed a weekend trip to Pondicherry. Took the Bangalore-Krishnagiri-Vellore-Arcot-Tindivanam-Pondicherry route. Due to 6 lane conversion there are many diversions (probably one every 15kms) which can slow you down considerably.

We started at 5:24 from Mahadevapura and reached Sarvana Bhavan,Vellore at 8:40. We left for pondi at 9:30 from here and went all the way to river bridge Arcot where we took a U turn before entering the bridge and proceeded onto Arcot town, where we took the left turn just after Kushal Jewelers to continue towards Vandavasi/Tindivanam. For those of you taking this route instead of entering Arcot town take the left turn on the road that moves parallel to the river bed. This road will save you about 10 minutes. The road from Arcot to Tindivanam is two laned with decent road quality. From Tindivanam it was a 4/6 lane highway till Pondi. We covered Vellore-Pondi (Jipmer) in 3 Hours. The return journey took an extra hour due to heavy rush from Krishnagiri to Electronic City.

[racer_m]

Hi Folks,
Planning for a Bangalore - Puducherry trip on 6th March Wed.

Since I stay close to Old Madras Road, Planning to give the unchartered route a try. Targeting:
Hoskote-->Ranipet(via NH4)-->Cheyyar-->Vandavasi, Tamil Nadu-->Tindivanam, Tamil Nadu-->Puducherry

Will give an update once I complete the trip.
Meanwhile anyone has tried this route?

Originally Posted by racer_m

Meanwhile anyone has tried this route?

I have driven on this route: Hoskote-->Ranipet(via NH4)-->Cheyyar-->Vandavasi, Tamil Nadu-->Tindivanam, Tamil Nadu-->Puducherry. This will be my favourite route until 6-laning works are completed in GQ.